


The Kent Identity

by danceswithgary



Category: Smallville
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Movie Fusion, Drama, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-06-23
Updated: 2010-06-23
Packaged: 2017-10-10 06:09:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 34,048
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/96455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/danceswithgary/pseuds/danceswithgary
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When your entire life has been a lie, whom do you trust? Based on <i>The Bourne Identity</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Kent Identity

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Click for Full Size ](http://pics.livejournal.com/danceswithgary/pic/000691yx)

 

***

Chapter One

***

The first thing he noticed in his darkness was how hard it was to breathe. The salty air was thick enough to chew and his chest seemed to have an anvil resting on the center of it. Shifting his right arm in a misguided attempt to dislodge the unexpected weight triggered an explosion of pain in his upper back, flashes of red sparking beneath his heavy eyelids. He felt vulnerable, and a slight noise to the side signaled possible danger. With a groan, he ignored the scream of torn muscles to lurch upright, burning eyes forced open wide to scan his surroundings. A few feet away, a balding man stiffened visibly and then glanced back at him over a wool-clad shoulder, unshaven face blanching.

Jumping down from what he now recognized as a table, he stumbled toward the balding man, shouting, "What are you doing to me? Who are you?" A lack of clothing barely registered as the floor lurched and swayed under his feet. His fist grazed the stubbled jaw with no real force behind it, and the other grabbed his shoulders before he could fall over.

Watery blue eyes commanded his attention as the bald man explained forcefully, "You were in the water, hurt. We pulled you out and I have been treating you." A jerk of the head and flicked glance to the side pointed out a pile of scraps on the floor, pieces of a wetsuit. "I am Giancarlo. I act as the ship's doctor. Who are you?"

The dense mists were encroaching again as his tongue fumbled the reply, his erstwhile rescuer having spoken in French in response to his original questions shouted in English. A French phrase floated upwards as his body slid down bonelessly to the wooden planks.

"I don't know."

~/~

The reflection in the tarnished mirror remained a mystery, his identity a puzzle waiting for a solution. Chestnut-brown curls tumbled over a wide brow and brushed the neckline of a ragged gray sweater, while eyes of an indeterminate color widened in bafflement. It seemed a pleasant enough face, most likely in the mid-twenties, a strong jaw and straight nose balancing full lips and ordinary cheekbones. Teeth all his, straight and even, except for the sharp, overlong canines that had sparked a few quips about vampires. Oddly enough, his beard tended to be several shades darker than his hair and he wondered if he usually spent a great deal of time outdoors, possibly explaining the gold tones of his skin as well as the lighter hair.

A flush bloomed along those cheeks when he realized that he was stooping again in order to look in the silvered glass. His height was often a joke to the boat's raucous crew. They had spent some time looking through their extra clothing to find pants and shirts long enough for the castaway, and had teased about stork legs and beanpoles until he'd recovered enough of his strength to deter their gibes. He'd earned their respect as he worked alongside them, bringing in the fishing nets and storing the catch in the deep, ice-filled hold.

"Personne?"

Turning away from the mirror, he nodded at Giancarlo. The older man had entered the room carrying a small stack of magazines, which he placed on the table. Picking up a length of rope, he examined the intricate tangle of knots and then commented in his guttural French, "What's this, Personne? You tied these knots? So, it's starting to come back."

Having reluctantly accepted the name the doctor had suggested, French for 'nobody,' Personne shrugged and replied in the same language, "No, it isn't coming back. The knots are like everything else. I just found the rope, and I did it without even thinking about it. It's something else I can do, just as I can read, write, add, or subtract. I can make coffee..." At Giancarlo's snort of laughter, he amended the statement. "...I can make _bad_ coffee. I can shuffle cards and set up a chessboard...and beat you every time. I'm not even sure what nationality I am, since I speak French and German as well as English."

Giancarlo dismissed Personne's worries with a Gallic shrug. "It will come back, I'm sure. It has not even been two weeks since we pulled you out of the water. You are lucky to be alive after everything your body has been through: two bullets in your back, another one that grazed your temple, and all that water in your lungs. Now here you are, healthy and strong as an ox, just missing your memory."

Picking up one of the magazines, Personne flipped through it quickly and then tossed it back on the table, partially covering a map he'd laid out. "Nothing looks familiar. I have nothing from before except this." He held up his left hand and pointed to the heavy stainless steel chronograph on his wrist. "Well...and that capsule you took out of my hip."

Giancarlo nodded. "So you'll go to that bank and find out more. It is very different...even clever...to hide an account number that way. Perhaps...." He shook his head. "No, I know I've never seen anything like it before."

Personne reached into his pocket and pulled out the metal piece in question, an inch-long cylinder with a button that activated a red laser display showing the name of a bank in Zurich and an account number. Giancarlo had removed the cylinder from a badly healed scar on Personne's right hip, the same day he'd been fished out of the stormy sea. Looking between it and the doctor, he asked, "What about the other pieces? Have you discovered anything about them?"

Sighing, Giancarlo walked over to a cupboard and opened it. Reaching inside, he pulled out a small metal box and then closed the door. Turning back to Personne, he held it out. "Nothing, I'm afraid. All I can tell you is that they are possibly irradiated, since the lead shields you from the effects."

Nodding, Personne took the box and held it in his broad palm and flipped open the lid. He touched the small pellets inside and hissed in pain, then closed the box with a snap. "They still hurt me, yet they do nothing to you or anyone else in the crew. I don't understand why they were implanted under the skin on my back where I couldn't see or reach them."

"Perhaps that answer is also at the bank, Personne." Giancarlo shrugged again and sighed in mild frustration. "I could see that once they had been removed, you healed very quickly, so maybe it is a new medical procedure. I am an old practitioner, not up on the newest techniques. Your skin is tough now. I could barely cut through for the last few as you healed."

Shoving the small box and the capsule back into his pocket, Personne frowned and shook his head. One hand crept up to rub his temple where a faint scar lingered. "Too many questions, Giancarlo. I can't...."

Clapping his hand on Personne's shoulder, Giancarlo reassured him with a smile, "You need to rest. It will come back, I'm sure."

Personne's face reflected his discouragement. "What if it doesn't come back? We dock at Marseilles tomorrow and I don't even have a name."

Giancarlo reached into his pocket and pulled out a small wad of francs. "We took up a collection and the captain matched it. You earned it. It's not much, but it will get you to Zurich. You'll find your name there. I'm sure of it, Personne."

 

***

Chapter Two

***

 

The repetitious clack of the tracks beneath the train and the dimmed lights over the seats should have lulled him to sleep. It had been a long day, beginning with the docking and unloading of the fishing boat, and culminating in a run for the train terminal in order to catch the last scheduled departure for Zurich. He'd spent little time in goodbyes, the crew members simply ducking their heads as he waved to them from the docks. Personne was just another anonymous face in the crowd once again.

Playing with the capsule, he displayed the luminous message on the palm of one hand, the tiny red lettering barely visible against his skin. It didn't matter. He'd memorized the name of the bank and the alphanumeric account number the first time he'd seen it shining on the wall of Giancarlo's cabin. It suddenly struck him as ironic that he had the ability to recall everything he'd read or heard since he'd woken up with no name or past.

Personne's arrival in Zurich failed to spark any memories as he shuffled down deserted, snow-covered streets, casting a long shadow as he passed under bright street lamps. Minus identification, and knowing that he couldn't afford even the cheapest room, he opted to rest on a park bench, brushing off the fluffy snow before lying down. Curling up in a ball on the thin wooden slats, he tucked his hands deep inside the pockets of his ancient pea coat, surprised that he didn't feel the cold as much as he'd expected. He wasn't going to question that advantage, since it meant he'd survive until the bank opened in the morning.

Unfortunately, he wasn't allowed to rest for very long. Two Swiss policemen approached and nudged him with their nightsticks, their commands in peremptory German. "Get up! You can't sleep here. Let's see your identification."

Informing the officers in the same language that he had no identification, Personne remained huddled on the bench until the closest policeman shouted, "Stand up and put your hands in the air!" Rising slowly, Personne complied, but something inside him snapped at the sight of the guns the two officers held. Lunging forward, he grabbed the nearest officer's wrist and, with a sharp twist, dislocated his elbow, catching the pistol as the officer screamed and dropped it. At the same time, Personne lashed out in a high kick, catching the second officer in the jaw. The bone cracked with a sickening crunch and the officer dropped like a stone, his gun skittering across the ice-crusted snow. The first officer went down next after a blow to the back of his neck.

Less than three seconds had passed since Personne had begun to move.

Personne held the captured gun on the disabled men until it was clear neither one would be regaining his feet any time soon. With a practiced movement, he removed the clip of ammunition and then tossed it into some nearby bushes. The gun was disposed of, after he'd carefully wiped it down, with an overhead toss in the opposite direction. Retrieving the second gun from under the bench, he dealt with it in a similar fashion.

Kneeling in the trampled snow, Personne checked the men's breathing, and then thumbed one of their radios on. He made a quick request for assistance, but didn't stay. Stripping off his coat after emptying the pockets, Personne left it there to make it more difficult for the officers to describe him. The only other evidence he left behind was his footprints, the distance between them increasing with every stride as he ran halfway across the sleeping city.

~/~

Standing in front of a bank of televisions in the department store, Personne waited impatiently for the Gemeinschaft Bank, located directly across the street, to open for business. A newscaster captured his attention with an oddly familiar name, and Personne watched a sound bite on a deposed dictator, who ranted about a failed assassination attempt and threatened to expose corruption at the highest levels of government. Narrowing his eyes, Personne studied Mkwana Wombosi's dark-skinned face and then shook his head in frustration when nothing else surfaced from his mislaid memories. The doors of the bank opened a few minutes later, and the lure of potentially useful information drew him across the street as if he were attracted to a large, powerful magnet.

Catching a glimpse of himself in the immaculate glass of the bank's entrance, Personne winced. His stretched-out brown sweater had seen better days and his unruly curls danced wildly about his cold-reddened cheeks. He quickly swept a hand back through his tousled hair and made a futile attempt to tidy his clothes before pushing through the heavy doors into the hushed elegance of the financial institution.

His tentative entrance didn't go unnoticed. A young woman behind the desk immediately asked if he required assistance, and she switched without hesitation from German when he made his request in English. "I'm here about a numbered account."

Handing him a pen and a slip of paper, the receptionist directed Personne to fill out the account number so that she could direct his request to one of the bank managers. After checking for any observers in the spacious lobby, Personne jotted the letters and numbers down neatly and handed the slip back with a smile. With a nod, the woman waved Personne to the armored elevator, where a dark-suited guard waited to key in the access code.

The ride to the lower level was smooth and silent, the doors opening without a sound upon arrival. Immediately after exiting into a narrow room heavily protected by metal bars, thick glass, and several armed guards, Personne was directed to a nearby palm scanner to verify his access for the account number he'd supplied earlier. With a nod, the bank manager accepted the positive result and motioned Personne to follow him to a curtained alcove. He waited there for a few minutes before the manager returned with a locked metal box about the length and width of a standard briefcase, although twice as deep. Placing it on the counter next to the complimentary fax machine and calculator, the bank manager unlocked the safe deposit box, and then left Personne alone in the alcove. Carefully drawing the thick curtain closed, Personne began his search for clues to his identity.

The first layer of the container held a surprising amount of cash. The wrapped bundles were in large denominations and were predominantly euros, although there were a few stacks of American dollars. Riffling through the bound bills, Personne quickly ascertained that he was holding approximately two hundred thousand euros and fifty thousand American dollars. As he groped for the latch to the second level of the box, he shoved aside a couple of contact lens cases, a knife and some pens. Five or six credit cards slid around beneath his fingers, and he noticed there was more than one name embossed on them.

The reason for the variety of names became clear as he finally reached the bottom of the box. Gingerly moving aside an automatic, which he easily identified as a Beretta, Personne grabbed a stack of passports and shuffled through them with growing dismay.

Every one had a different name and nationality.

Every one had his photograph inside, or at least a reasonable facsimile of his face.

Brazilian: Gilberto do Piento

Russian: Antonin Kintarov

Canadian: Paul Kay

British: John Michael Kane

American: Kyle Kent

There were subtle differences in each passport photo: hair either black or brown, eye color hazel, blue or brown. Even certain facial characteristics varied; cheekbones and jaw appearing wider in some photos, narrower in others. Unconsciously skimming his fingers over those features, Personne concluded that 'Kyle Kent' and 'John Michael Kane' appeared to be the closest to the face he'd studied in the mirror, back on the fishing boat. The difficulty was that he still had no idea who he really was.

He also couldn't think of a legitimate reason for that many identities...and a gun.

While he was rubbing his eyes, dry and gritty after a long night without sleep, his thumb slipped down and scraped across his cheekbone hard enough for him to feel something shift beneath the skin. Cautiously, he repeated the action on the other cheek and along his jaw and chin. All at once, the reason for the differences in the facial features became clear. The small pellets weren't the only things embedded under his skin. There seemed to be pads of some type of material that had changed the shape of his face.

Not only was he missing his memory along with his name, but he also couldn't even be sure what he really looked like until the implants were removed and he healed. The continued uncertainty left Personne feeling nauseous. He suddenly sprang into action. Picking up the red courtesy bag left out for the bank's customers to use as needed, he dumped the entire contents of the safe deposit box into it, with the exception of the gun, one of the passports, and a few loose euros. The euros went into a pocket, along with Kyle Kent's passport.

The gun stayed inside the box.

Closing the box, Kyle carried it back to the bank manager and handed it over. As the box changed hands, Kyle casually asked, "How long since I was here last? I've lost track."

The manager shrugged. "I'm not sure, sir. Possibly three weeks?" Kyle nodded in thanks and entered the elevator, noticing one of the guards making a phone call. The fact that the guard was staring directly at him as the doors closed left Kyle feeling uneasy and disinclined to linger inside the bank. Once outside, he looped the red bag over one shoulder and began to walk down the street, alert for any sign of pursuit.

Rounding a corner, Kyle halted for just a moment at the sight of two Swiss policemen walking down the street toward him. He continued ahead, relaxing only a little when they strolled by him without a word. A siren began wailing, approaching closer with each passing second, and he jerked when an ambulance careened around a corner just ahead. After it passed by, he crossed the street, narrowly avoiding a streetcar. A glance over his shoulder revealed that the policemen had reversed direction and were now following him. Another siren started up and he looked down the street to see a patrol car screech to a halt across an intersection.

Realizing that he was surrounded, Kyle searched for an escape route, and conveniently found it directly under an oddly familiar flag. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his passport and flipped it open to display it to the armed soldier standing beside the door. A quick, "I'm an American citizen," and he was inside the embassy, while his pursuers were denied entry.

He was safe for the moment, but somehow he knew that it wouldn't last.

 

***

Chapter Three

***

 

Standing irresolute in the atrium of the embassy, Kyle glanced around the room to pinpoint all of the guards, security cameras, and exits. Through an archway to the left, he could see long lines of people seeking assistance from embassy staffers, and he decided to join them as a form of camouflage. Attaching himself to the median line, avoiding the shortest and longest, he strove to remain inconspicuous while assessing his options. He suspected his safety within the confines of the embassy was limited. Discovery was simply a matter of time considering what he'd already found out about himself, coupled with the fact that he'd been sought so quickly when he'd resurfaced.

Cool, clipped tones from the front of the line caught his attention. It was apparent from the rigid stance of the redhead standing before the staffer's window that he was not happy with the information he'd received. The escalating volume of his voice supported that observation. "Considering the fact that I can't access any of my accounts until this is cleared up, I have no choice. I seem to be constrained by your bureaucratic timetable." The formal words were at odds with the casual dress of the young man, his neon-bright ski jacket and black jeans more suited to a college student than to a diplomat or businessman. Scrambling his rejected forms together, he issued a final curt demand. "I've spoken to several staffers on this matter already. I expect this to be resolved within the next three days. I don't care if the weekend is coming up."

Kyle watched as the man spun away from the window and stalked past him on his way out of the embassy. The stranger's blue-gray eyes were icy in a pale face, and Kyle couldn't help but admire his control and aplomb in what seemed to have been a difficult situation. Turning to watch the redhead walk out, Kyle noticed a gathering of guards in the atrium, and realized his time was up. After making sure his bag was secure over his shoulder, he began to sidle towards another small exit door on his right.

"You there! With the red bag there. Stop! Put your hands up!" Two Marine guards were approaching with their guns held at the ready. Directly behind them, holding out a set of handcuffs, was a third man, dressed in a black suit that immediately identified him as embassy security. At the sight of the weapons, the people standing in line began to scurry in the opposite direction, their dull chatter rising to strident concern.

Almost to the exit, Kyle halted with his hands up. The moment the black-suited man touched Kyle's wrist, he spun back around and used the momentum to sweep the other man off his feet, wincing when his pursuer's head hit the marble floor with an ominous thud. Kyle's remaining pursuers seemed to slow to a crawl, all sound slurring to a hush as he yanked away the guns before they could be fired. A jump-kick sent one guard flying backward into a wall twenty feet away, while the other was dispatched with an elbow to the solar plexus and a knee to the jaw.

A gun in each hand, Kyle felt the world speed back up into normal time until he could hear the screams of terrified civilians amid the shouts of staffers. Two newly-arrived Marines backed out of the room to avoid the threat of gunfire in the presence of innocent bystanders. Kyle swept the room with a glance, and then ran for the small door he'd been headed for originally. It opened easily into a stairwell and, instinctively, Kyle started up the stairs.

Emerging on the second floor, Kyle could see that the building had been placed on high alert, the occupants retreating to safe zones. Stuffing the guns into a nearby trash receptacle, he ran down the hall until he located a second marked exit. Unfortunately, when he entered the echoing stairwell, he could hear by the approaching shouts that he'd already been cut off from escape.

The only way out...was up.

Somehow, he knew that the Marines and security personnel would be conducting a floor-by-floor search, so he didn't waste any time heading for the top floor. Once there, he found a wall-mounted map, which detailed evacuation procedures, and he ripped it down, quickly pinpointing a nearby fire escape. Running down the deserted hallway, he ducked into a storeroom and let the door close behind him. He frowned when he saw the padlock on the exit door he'd been looking for.

A fire extinguisher proved handy for knocking the lock open, though he was careful to replace the extinguisher on the wall and pick up the broken lock to conceal it from the searchers. Quickly passing through the door, he closed it securely behind him and then made his way across the top of the elevator shaft to a barricaded exit door, ignoring the warning sign posted on it. The boards gave way with a few kicks and he was outside on an ironwork balcony...minus the expected fire escape ladder.

Five stories above the ground, Kyle discovered why the door had been barricaded as soon as he tried to climb onto the balcony railing to reach the roof.

It was broken.

A frantic grab at the edge of the platform saved him from falling to the distant ground, but the red bag plummeted down and disappeared inside a snowdrift. Dangling below the platform, Kyle swung back and forth until he could reach the ledge that ran around the side of the building. Just as he flattened himself against the bricks, the door opened above his head. He could see the barrel of a rifle extend out, but no one was brave enough to venture out onto the precariously balanced platform. After a moment, the gun withdrew and the door slammed shut, leaving Kyle alone again.

Checking both directions, Kyle decided to work toward the rear of the building and began inching along the edge until he reached the inside corner of the wall. His fingers found impossible handholds in the brickwork, and he managed to lower himself to the next ledge down. A handy drainpipe provided the means to descend the remainder of the way. Listening for any shouts of discovery, Kyle darted back for his bag, pulling it free from the snowdrift with a yank.

Ducking down the nearest alley, Kyle tried to keep his speed to a walk to avoid drawing any attention. He was successful and, a few blocks away, he halted for a moment to gain his bearings. A movement ahead caught his eye, and he watched as a slightly familiar figure approached a dark-blue Mini parked in the alley. Reaching a decision, Kyle approached the red-haired man he'd noticed in the embassy. As the stranger slid a key into the door lock on the driver's side, Kyle called out, "Excuse me?"

Caught off-guard, the other man barked, "What do you want?"

Kyle realized that he looked less than reputable in his ragged sweater and rumpled clothes, so he moved slowly as he reached into his red bag. "I heard you inside, inside the consulate. I thought maybe we could help each other." He pulled out a bundle of the euros and held it up.

The redhead's eyes narrowed at the sight of the cash and he warily responded, "Explain."

Kyle took a few steps closer. "You sounded like you need money. I need a ride out of here."

"I'm not running a cab service." Shaking his head in dismissal, the other man finished unlocking and then opened the car door.

Reaching the passenger side of the small vehicle in two strides, Kyle blurted out, "I'll pay you ten thousand dollars to drive me to Paris."

Rolling his blue eyes in disbelief, the other muttered in German, "What do you think I am, a fool?"

Responding in the same language, Kyle insisted, "You'd be a fool not to take it."

"What is this? Some kind of joke...a scam?"

Kyle tossed the offered bundle of bills over the top of the car, and his quarry caught it handily. "No, not a scam. It's very real. And I'll give you another ten thousand when we get there."

A police car went by the end of the alley with the siren wailing, and Kyle automatically turned his face away.

The movement did not go unnoticed. "That for you?"

Declining to answer that question, Kyle persisted, "Look, you drive, I pay. It's that simple."

Studying Kyle's face for a few heartbeats, and then assessing the money in his hand, the other man shook his head slowly. "Fuck. Listen, I have more than enough trouble of my own to handle. Okay?"

Tired and discouraged, Kyle decided he'd try to find something a little further on. He couldn't prevent his voice from sounding disheartened as he extended his hand across the top of the car. "Fine. Can I have my money back, then?"

Seeming startled at Kyle's easy acceptance of the refusal, the redhead glanced at the money again and then shrugged. Shoving the bills into his pocket, he entered the car and leaned across to pop open the passenger door. Kyle leaned down, puzzled at the sudden change, and heard a muttered, "Well, what are you waiting for? Get in."

 

***

Chapter Four

***

 

Waiting until his passenger was settled...almost folded...into the seat, he started the car and put it into gear. As the car began to advance down the narrow alley, he hazarded a glance at the other man. Detecting no overt signs of danger, he decided to make the first move, while still keeping some information in reserve. "I'm...AJ."

After a slight turn of the head, hazel eyes switched from a darting survey of the windows and rearview mirror to meet his for a moment. AJ observed carefully as a tongue flickered out to wet full lips before he received a response. "Kyle." No other information was forthcoming and the two men traveled in silence along the narrow streets of Zurich until they reached the A1, the highway that would start them on their northwestern journey to Paris.

"Can we stay off the main roads?" The quiet words startled AJ. He pulled the car over before the entrance ramp and assessed the other man's request. Obviously realizing he should explain, Kyle ducked his head a little before murmuring, "Someone...might be looking...."

After a moment, AJ nodded curtly. "There should be a map in the glove compartment. Find us an alternate route."

Surprise flashed across Kyle's face and his eyes deepened to an olive-green as he studied AJ carefully. What he observed must have satisfied him because he immediately began to fumble through the contents of the glove compartment, managing to open it despite his long legs being in the way. With a grunt of triumph, he extracted the folded paper and located their position. He quickly identified a less-frequented road and directed AJ through the streets until they were on it and on their way out of Zurich.

As the car's tires sang along the miles of two-lane blacktop, AJ could feel himself finally relaxing from his earlier encounter with hapless embassy staffers. Their inability to process his paperwork had put a crimp in his schedule, and potentially left him vulnerable to certain long-distance machinations. An unplanned detour to Paris could work to his advantage by keeping his surveillance off-balance, which was one of the reasons he'd invited a complete stranger into his car. The other reason had no basis in logic. He'd looked into Kyle's eyes and had seen someone lost, needing help and not knowing how to ask for it.

He'd seen eyes like that in his own mirror too often to ignore them.

Of course, he could be wrong and had just invited one of his unseen pursuers along for the ride. He'd like to think that he'd become more proficient in identifying his tails, but there was always room for error. Fortunately, the only danger they'd presented in the past had been to his education or business plans...not his life.

The other man's worn clothing and unruly curls certainly did not reflect the state of his finances, if he carried more than the money promised for the trip. His face was handsome, yet unremarkable, and his soft-spoken manner seemed educated beyond the average. AJ was willing to wager he was American, although his German had been impeccable. In all, he really had little to go on when it came to assessing the risk he was taking.

It wasn't AJ's normal risk-averse behavior, and he wasn't sure he was comfortable with the change.

The silence began to pall, and AJ ventured a few conversational threads. His passenger limited his replies to an occasional nod, smile, or shrug to the subjects AJ introduced, and he began to feel frustrated by the constant stonewalling. It wasn't as if he was asking for Kyle's life history, just some sort of interaction to help pass the time. He finally subsided with a slight frown and concentrated on his driving.

"And then...?"

Kyle's quiet question took AJ by surprise. "What?"

"You were telling me about that economics summit and the speaker you didn't agree with, and how you'd made counterpoints to his arguments in your dissertation." The green in Kyle's eyes had muted to a lighter color flecked with gold, and AJ felt himself drawn in by the shy smile.

Unaccountably flustered by the evidence that Kyle had been listening all along, AJ muttered sullenly, "Sorry, I don't know why I was boring you with all that. I don't usually...I'm going to shut up now."

The protest was soft-spoken. "No, please don't do that. I haven't talked to anybody in quite a while."

"But _we're_ not talking. _I'm_ talking. I don't think you've said more than ten words since we left Zurich."

"Listening to you is relaxing." Kyle's dark lashes dipped shyly. "I haven't slept in a while and I've got this headache. It's been kind of a constant thing and it's finally starting to move to the background, so...keep going, please. I really am enjoying it."

AJ studied him in short glances for a mile or two and then nodded. "Okay, when I think of something else to talk about. Until then, what kind of music do you like?" He reached down to turn on the radio and changed the channel until a pop station came on. Raising his eyebrows in a silent inquiry, he waited for Kyle to indicate his preference.

After a moment, Kyle shook his head. "I don't know...."

AJ scanned past a few more channels ranging from talk shows to classical. "C'mon. It's not that difficult. What do you like? Tell me."

Kyle looked a little baffled and then he frowned. "I don't...know...." He pinched his nose between his eyes and rubbed with a grimace before looking out the side window.

Aggravated, AJ shut off the radio without a word. A few more miles passed in complete silence and then his simmering frustration exploded. "I can't believe I'm doing this. It's ridiculous! Who pays 20,000 dollars for a ride to Paris?"

Settling his head back against the seat, Kyle closed his eyes and sighed. "Fuck." The word was uttered in quiet despair...not anger...and took AJ aback. Before AJ could say anything, Kyle rolled his head towards him, opened his eyes, and confessed, "I can't remember anything that happened before two weeks ago."

AJ's immediate response was flippant. "Lucky you."

Straightening up as much as he could in his cramped position, Kyle shook his head. "No, I'm serious. I don't know who I am. I don't know where I'm going. None of it."

"You mean...like amnesia?"

"Yes. A boat picked me up out of the water, in the middle of the ocean...and I'd been shot three times."

"Shot. Amnesia."

"Yes."

"Right." Unsure how to handle Kyle's odd declaration, AJ kept on driving without saying another word. He occupied himself by mentally reviewing his latest contracts, and tried not to resent the situation he'd chosen to place himself in...jumping in feet first without thinking it through. Kyle rested his head against the window and watched the scenery go by with dull, unblinking eyes.

The sun went down as they left the mountains behind. AJ eventually noticed that Kyle had fallen asleep, his head still leaning against the window as they traveled through the night. The radio had remained off and the car was silent, except for the whine of the tires and purr of the small engine. Rolling Kyle's story around in his mind, AJ kept glancing over at him. The lights of passing cars lit the curves of his face, vulnerable in sleep, and AJ thought to himself that his unexpected passenger looked much younger than he'd first believed.

They passed through several small villages before AJ pulled into the parking lot of a small roadside restaurant. "I need coffee. You?"

"Could we stop long enough to get something to eat?"

"_You're_ the customer." When he saw Kyle wince at his cold tone, AJ took pity on him and softened his voice. "Sure, I'm a little hungry, too. It'll be good to get out of the car for a while. Come on."

The restaurant was lightly populated, and a smiling waitress took their orders quickly. As they waited for the food to arrive, Kyle rummaged in the red bag he'd brought in from the car. Pulling out the small official-looking folders, he shoved them across the table toward AJ. "Listen, I'm not making this up. These are real."

Unprepared for Kyle's sudden action, AJ knew that his face was reflecting his surprise. After flipping through the passports and noting the different names in each one, he looked back up at Kyle and granted him an opportunity to explain further. "Okay, and...."

Kyle's face held no answers. Neither did his words. "Who has a safe deposit box with five passports, all that money and...a gun?" Tapping his temple with his forefinger, Kyle leaned forward and demanded urgently, "Who has nothing except a bank account number? Not in my memory..." He dropped his gaze to the table for a moment and then looked back up. "...in a capsule a doctor cut out of my hip."

Puzzled at the trust implied by Kyle's openness, as well as his questions, AJ shook his head slowly, frowning. "A gun? I don't...."

Kyle didn't let him finish, gathering up the passports and stuffing them back in the red bag with jerky movements. "I left it at the bank. It didn't feel right, but...." Closing the bag with a jerk, Kyle set it on the seat beside him and then leaned forward again. "Do you know the first thing I did when I walked in here? I checked the sightlines and located the exits."

"I always look for the exit signs, too. I'm not worried." AJ tried to reassure him while Kyle warily studied the waitress and the few other customers. "You said you were shot. People do all sorts of weird and amazing shit when they're scared. It's adrenaline."

Still looking around the small dining room, Kyle shook his head in disagreement. He kept his voice low and steady. "I can tell you the license plate numbers of all six cars outside. I can tell you our waitress is left-handed and that the guy at the bar weighs 250 pounds...and knows how to handle himself in a fight. I know that the best place to look for a gun is in the cab of the gray truck outside, and that at this altitude I can run flat out for a mile before my hands start shaking." AJ noticed an odd sheen to Kyle's green eyes as he stared across the table at AJ. "Why would I know that?"

AJ could offer no rational explanation and resorted to a shrug, as he absently rearranged his knife and fork on the table, unsure why he wasn't feeling more disturbed at what he was hearing.

The lines of distress deepened in Kyle's face as he whispered hoarsely, "How can I know all that and not know who I am?"

AJ had no answers.

 

***

Chapter Five

***

 

A persistent tapping on the window by his head roused Kyle with a start from his deepest sleep since he'd woken on the boat two weeks earlier. AJ's face peering in was the only thing that prevented a full-blown panic attack at his carelessness. Rubbing his face with one hand, Kyle popped the door open and stumbled out of the car with a groan. Stretching lazily, he grinned sleepily at his older companion. "Man, I really slept. I can't believe it."

Standing next to Kyle, his neon jacket unzipped and blindingly bright in the morning sun, AJ agreed. "You were obviously tired." He handed Kyle a fresh croissant and a cup of coffee. "Here, for 20,000, I figured I could at least provide breakfast." After an awkward moment of silence, he gave up on waiting for Kyle to respond, shrugged, and then walked away to stand on the riverbank where he tossed bits of his own croissant to a pair of noisy ducks.

Kyle felt a little guilty for not knowing what to say to the man who had accepted his implausible story and had not abandoned him by the side of the road as a possible threat. They had spoken little after they'd left the restaurant the night before. Kyle hadn't been able to answer many questions for AJ...and he'd been unwilling to pry into AJ's affairs in return. Sighing, he demolished his pastry and emptied the coffee cup quickly in the hope of resuming their journey without further delay.

Looking around the parking lot, he noticed that it was in a small park by the river and a restroom stood nearby. With a wave, he caught AJ's eye and pointed toward the building. He'd only taken a few steps when he heard AJ call out, "Your bag!" Stopping, he turned back around to see AJ still standing there by the ducks, his face reflecting concern over Kyle's careless actions. Glancing between AJ and the car, Kyle shrugged. Wheeling about, Kyle kept walking toward the restroom, reflecting that he knew that AJ wouldn't drive off with all that Kyle owned.

He didn't know why, but he trusted AJ. Right then, that was all that mattered.

After relieving himself and a quick wash at the sinks, Kyle emerged from the restroom to see AJ tossing the last of his breakfast to his feathered companions. Dusting off his hands, he walked back to meet Kyle at the car.

"I can see we're just outside the city. Did you stop for gas?"

AJ didn't answer until they both settled back inside the car and he was reversing out of the parking space. "Yeah, that's when I got the food. You were pretty out of it." Placing the car in forward gear, he maneuvered them back onto the main road and continued, "So, do you think there's possibly...a wife or family waiting for you?"

Kyle shook his head as he watched the scenery pass by. "I don't know. I guess I haven't really thought about it."

Making his way through the morning traffic, AJ listened as Kyle directed him across the city to the address listed on the visa issued to Kyle Kent. As they drove down the street where the apartment was supposed to be located, AJ pointed at a building and asked, "Isn't that it? 104, right?"

Kyle checked the slip of paper and nodded. "That's the address."

"Okay." AJ began to pull into an open parking space near the building until Kyle grabbed his arm and shook his head.

"No, keep going."

After a puzzled glance, AJ did as Kyle directed and continued down the street. "Okay. Then where?"

"Keep going. Take a left over here." Kyle pointed to a spot a block further down and across the street from the apartment building. AJ pulled in and parked, turning off the engine.

Turning off the car, he turned in his seat to face Kyle. "So this is it, right?"

Kyle looked over his shoulder and frowned. "I guess." He knew that he didn't sound very positive and tried to explain. "I don't recognize any of this."

His tentative words left AJ looking uncomfortable. "Kyle...."

Knowing that he had to make a move, Kyle scrabbled for the bag on the floor between his feet. "Oh, I forgot. The money." He reached inside the bag, pulled out the bundle of cash, and handed it to AJ.

Turning the stack of bills over in his hand, AJ frowned. "Thanks."

When AJ failed to say anything more, Kyle shrugged and popped open the door. "Listen, thanks for the ride...and your help." He had one foot on the curb before AJ shifted restlessly in his seat.

"Hey...I...anytime." blurted AJ, his face screwed up in an awkward smile that slipped away quickly.

Kyle paused. 'Well, you could come up.... Or you could wait here while I check it out. I mean wait...."

"No, no. That's...I mean you'll probably just forget about me, if I stay down here."

Kyle tried a lopsided grin, suddenly feeling shy. "How could I forget about you? You're...the only person I know."

AJ studied him for a moment before he returned a smile that reached his ice-blue eyes. "I guess that's true." Reaching a decision, he yanked the keys out of the ignition and got out of the car. He looked over the hood of the car at Kyle, who'd gotten out at the same time, and nodded. "Let's go see what we can find out."

The walk to the building only took a minute or two and they were soon standing outside a set of ornate wrought iron security doors. Kyle pressed the buzzer beside the nameplate marked 'Kent' but there was no answer.

His hands in his pockets, AJ looked up and down the street and then joked lightly, "I guess you're not home."

Appreciating the attempt to lighten the mood, Kyle glanced sideways at AJ with an exaggerated cock of an eyebrow. He tried the doors once more and then shrugged, ready to turn away when a stout, middle-aged woman hurried to open them from inside. She waved them both in, babbling away in French, "Monsieur Kent, there you are! I was wondering. I haven't seen you in so long."

Kyle replied in the same language. "Yes, here I am...and I forgot my keys." She let him by with a smile and held up a jangling set of keys. She removed one and handed it over, telling Kyle to bring it back when he was finished. Kyle thanked her graciously and headed for the spiral staircase, AJ trailing behind without a word.

Walking up the marble steps, Kyle looked around at the stately old building, noting each flight exited to a single apartment with his at the top, the sixth floor. The key supplied by the landlady fit without a problem and the two men entered, closing the door behind them. Standing in the entryway, Kyle looked around with no recognition. Their footsteps echoed on hardwood floors as they walked through spacious rooms with large windows and Spartan furnishings. There seemed to be a distinct lack of personalization, but Kyle could tell that what little was there was of high quality.

AJ had wandered into a side room and called back, "Are you sure this is all yours?"

Shrugging absently as he flipped through some magazines on the nightstand by a king-size bed, Kyle muttered, "I guess so." Turning around, he caught sight of himself in a full-length mirror. His ragged clothing looked distinctly odd against the perfectly neat surroundings. He grimaced at the ragged sweater and baggy jeans cinched up with a cheap webbing belt. Sighing, he left the bedroom behind to enter what looked like a study.

AJ looked up from a book he was leafing through in front of a sparsely-filled bookcase. "Any clues?" He waved a hand at the surroundings. "It certainly looks as if money was no object."

Crossing the room to a heavy wooden desk, Kyle shook his head. "I still don't recognize anything." He sifted through a pile of paperwork on the blotter. "From the looks of these...I think I'm in the shipping business. Maybe."

AJ shoved the book back into the bookcase and then stretched with a yawn. "Do you mind if I use the bathroom?"

Still reading some invoices he'd located, Kyle absently approved AJ's request. "Uh, sure. Anything you want." He noted AJ shrugging out of his jacket out of the corner of his eye and then lost sight of him as AJ walked out of the room. Pulling out the desk chair, Kyle sat down, dropping the red bag on top of the polished wooden surface with a thud. Grabbing the desk phone's receiver, he studied it the buttons on the base for a moment before pressing the redial button.

"Hotel Regina. How may I assist you?" The woman on the other end of the line had answered in French, but she switched to English when Kyle asked for the hotel's address in that language. "We are located at Faubourg Saint-Honore 2, Place des Pyramides, monsieur."

Fumbling for a pen, Kyle jotted the information down on the blotter before asking, "I'm looking for a guest, Kyle Kent?"

"One moment, please. I'm sorry, monsieur. We do not have anyone by that name. Is there anything else I can help you with today?"

Frowning, Kyle thought for a moment and then tried, "How about John Michael Kane?"

"One moment, please."

There were a few seconds of silence, and then a man's voice with a sympathetic tone came across the line. "Hello, this is the hotel's manager. You are a friend of Mr. Kane? I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but Monsieur Kane passed away two weeks ago. It was an accident on the motorway."

Not waiting for any response from Kyle, the manager continued abruptly, "He was killed instantly."

 

***

Chapter Six

***

 

Taking Kyle at his word, AJ detoured through the bedroom on his way to clean up. He was feeling the effects of the long drive and hoped it would revive him. Rummaging through dresser drawers and the walk-in closet, he inventoried the available clothing in search of something he could borrow. While he was at it, he laid out a change of clothes for Kyle, too. He mused that the olive pullover he'd found would bring out the green in Kyle's eyes...and that line of thinking made him stop in surprise. He wasn't sure when he'd started thinking of Kyle that way, and he was equally unsure that it was a good idea to continue.

Picking up the sweater, jeans and underwear he'd decided would fit him well enough, AJ headed for the bathroom and a highly anticipated shower. Unfortunately, he soon discovered that particular pleasure was not available. With a disgruntled sigh, he deposited the clothes on the marble-topped vanity, and went in search of his host. Following the sound of Kyle's voice, he reentered the study just as the younger man hung up the desk phone.

"There's no hot water." When Kyle failed to respond right away, AJ took a closer look at his disturbed face. "What's wrong?"

"I'm dead."

The lifeless phrase was not what AJ had been expecting, and it took him a moment to regroup. Before he could think of a response, Kyle attempted to clarify his odd statement, "I mean...one of me...one of the names on the passports is dead. The 'John Michael Kane'...identity."

"How?"

Coming around the desk, Kyle approached AJ where he stood in the doorway. "They said it was a car accident." Waiting for AJ to move out of the way, Kyle shook his head slowly, "Supposedly my brother picked up my 'effects' and paid my bill at the hotel." He passed by AJ and began walking down the hallway to the bathroom. "I don't...." He paused and looked toward the window at the end of the hall, his face puzzled.

Stopping right behind him, AJ reached out to touch Kyle's arm. "What is it?"

"Nothing, I guess." Kyle shrugged and turned to enter the bedroom just as the window exploded inward, shards of frosted glass flying everywhere. A dark form swung inside as the hoarse chatter of a machine gun filled the air, even before the Teutonic-looking blond man found his balance.

At the first indication of danger, Kyle had thrust AJ through the doorway of the bedroom. Pressing AJ down into a crouch, Kyle left him there and raced down the hallway at a speed AJ found hard to believe. Before he could think of any countermeasures, AJ found himself watching a vicious hand-to-hand fight, no holds barred. The machine gun clattered down the hallway in AJ's direction and he scuttled forward far enough to grab it.

In the few seconds AJ's attention was occupied by the gun, Kyle had maneuvered his attacker into the study. AJ ran down the hall with the gun at the ready and entered the study in time to see the two men exchanging a flurry of blows using hands and feet. AJ watched closely for any opening to help Kyle, but it was clear he needed no assistance. In fact, AJ was almost certain that Kyle was holding back, and that was confirmed when Kyle glanced in his direction and growled, "Get back!"

That small distraction was all that the attacker needed. A gleaming knife suddenly appeared in his fist. AJ called out a warning, and Kyle deftly avoided the first slash and backed up to the desk, allowing the other to approach close enough to lunge at Kyle again. The knife ended up embedded in the top of the desk when Kyle dodged away in an impossible move. The sound of breaking bone signaled Kyle's counterattack, and the blond man's arm dangled at an anatomically incorrect angle. AJ winced involuntarily when another crunch sent the attacker to his knees with a howl, his lower leg shattered by a savage kick.

Ripping a knapsack free from the broken man's back, Kyle tossed it in AJ's direction with an order to, "Look inside. See what you can find." Looping the gun's strap over his shoulder, AJ picked up the knapsack and unzipped it quickly, searching it quickly while keeping an eye on the other two men. In the meantime, Kyle had grabbed the attacker's hair and thrust him to the floor, banging his head against the wood and demanding, "Who are you?" When he received no answer, he repeated the action, but the other remained stubbornly silent.

The crinkle of paper under his hand distracted AJ from Kyle's interrogation technique, and he extracted several printouts from the depths of the bag he was holding. The bag dropped to the floor when AJ registered what he'd found. "What the fuck?" Apparently, he'd spoken louder than he'd thought because Kyle's head lifted and he darted an inquiring glance in AJ's direction. Holding up the detailed descriptions with photos of Kyle and himself, which obviously had been taken at the embassy the previous day, AJ shouted. "How did they get these out so quickly? What the hell is going on, Kyle?" He took a few steps toward Kyle and waved the papers at his prisoner. "Why are you trying to kill us?"

When AJ shoved the wanted posters back into the knapsack and unslung the gun from his shoulder, Kyle jumped up. He stepped between AJ and the downed man. "Don't do this, AJ. I'll take care of it." He gave AJ a little shove in the direction of the hallway. "You stay there." AJ looked over Kyle's shoulder, and his eyes must have provided a clue, because Kyle whirled back around in time to see the blond back on his feet and lurching for the window. Before either man could move, the attacker crashed through the glass and fell from the small balcony, the wrought iron railing no barrier to his determined lunge, his unexpected descent heralded by the sound of squealing tires and screams.

Kyle ran to the window and peered over the railing, shuddering once before turning back to AJ. After a quick glance at his watch, Kyle ordered brusquely, "Get your things." He hurried to the desk and shoved everything on the desk into the red bag. Looking over his shoulder at AJ, who had yet to move, he repeated, "Get your coat, AJ."

AJ shook himself and nodded, still in a state of shock at the recent events on top of his earlier exhaustion, the gun in his hands forgotten. "Sure. Yeah. He went out the window. Why would anyone do that?" When Kyle approached him cautiously, AJ blinked and focused on his concerned face. "I don't understand." He let Kyle take the gun without protest, backing away until he could lean against the doorjamb. "Why did he jump?"

Kyle pulled his sweater off and used it to wipe down the barrel of the gun before sliding it under the desk. "Listen, AJ. We can't stay here. It's not safe. We've got to go. We've got to go, right now." Grabbing AJ's arm, he dragged him down the hallway with him and into the bedroom. Leaving AJ standing in the center of the room, Kyle pulled a coat from the closet, as well as a duffel, and started stuffing in clothes from the closet and drawers of the bedroom. "Listen, you can wait for the cops to get here if you want, but I've got to go." Zipping the bag shut, Kyle turned back to AJ, frowning at AJ's lack of response. "AJ?"

AJ tried to find the words to explain why he wasn't being more helpful, but when his brain failed to produce them, he turned his back on Kyle instead. That simple action produced the response he was looking for.

"Damn it! Why didn't you tell me you were hurt!"

AJ could feel Kyle's hands fluttering over his back, skimming his shoulder as if he was afraid to touch. He could feel the blood sliding down his spine and pooling at the top of his jeans and could understand Kyle's distress. The burning pain released the missing words with a gasp. "I didn't know."

"Let me see...." AJ could feel Kyle lifting his shirt and heard the sympathetic hiss. "Okay, okay, that looks like it hurts, but it's just a graze. The bleeding is already slowing down." The shirt was lowered carefully, and Kyle turned AJ back around to face him. "Can you walk? Are you staying or coming with me?"

Knowing the question was important, AJ tried to push away the fog that threatened his thinking processes. With an abrupt shake of his head, he pulled himself back together. "I can't stay here. They're looking for me, too. Napoleonic code. Don't want to end up in a French jail."

"Then you're coming with me. We'll take care of that after we're out of here." Kyle held open AJ's bright jacket and helped him into it, zipping it shut and making sure the bloodstains were covered. He snatched the duffel off the bed and took AJ's arm again. "Let's go."

With each passing minute, AJ felt his control returning, and he was able to make his way down the long flights of stairs with little assistance. He couldn't help reflecting that the game of cat and mouse he'd been playing for the past few years had not really prepared him for deadly consequences. As he passed by the landlady seated on the bench by the door, he could see that she hadn't been prepared, either.

The small hole in the center of her forehead and her lifeless eyes made that very clear.

 

***

Chapter Seven

***

 

It had started to rain while they were upstairs, a steady drizzle that settled into the bones and did nothing to wash away the stain of sudden death. Kyle stopped in the front door long enough to check for observers and then hurried AJ down the sidewalk to their unremarkable car. The hubbub beneath the window had risen, and the shouts and sirens helped mask their escape.

There was silence between them as Kyle piloted the Mini through the crowded streets. He'd taken over the driving without a word, his hand held out for the keys when AJ hissed in pain from an injudicious attempt to open the car door. AJ hadn't argued, merely got in on the passenger side and settled into the seat with a sigh, his head falling back, his eyes closing in relief.

Kyle looked over at him as he coasted to a stop on Rue Denain, parking a short block away from the Gare du Nord. When AJ rolled his head toward him and opened his eyes in a mute question, he held up the red bag and explained, "You stay here. I'm going to go find a place for this money. I'll be back in ten minutes."

When he got out, he left the keys in the ignition, and then he walked away without looking back.

Once inside the station, Kyle let the rumble of the trains and the sharp bustle of hurried people envelop him, a mask of sight and sound to help disguise him from any watching eyes. The click of the changing letters and numbers on the departures board drew his eyes, and he read the list of destinations with no specific intent or recognition.  
_  
Orry-La-Ville-Chantil_

Longeau Amiens Etaple

En Tete Bruxelles Liege

Lille Flanders

Dusseldorf

Calais  


Alternatives to Paris beckoned and he fought the impulse to leave, to find a place that didn't whisper of death and threaten with guns and ache with the mystery of who he had once been. Shaking away the temptation with a jerk of his head, he located the bank of lockers he'd been searching for and stuffed the bag inside the nearest one, after first removing a passport and some money. A coin and a click and he held a key that he slipped into his pocket.

Minus his burden, he wasted no time leaving, walking briskly back to the car. His pace slowed as he realized the car was empty, that AJ was no longer sitting inside. Surprise spiked inside him, and he spun around on the sidewalk to search the surrounding area with worried eyes. The sight of AJ emerging from a small store across the street, a bag dangling casually from his fingers, sent a mixed surge of anger and relief flooding through Kyle's veins. As AJ neared, Kyle clenched his fists and made it clear he wasn't pleased in a gritty undertone laden with anger. "I told you to stay in the car!"

Shrugging, AJ opened the passenger door and got back in, his bag going on the floor between his feet. Kyle yanked open the driver's door and plopped down in his seat, repeating a little more loudly, "I thought I made it clear you were supposed to stay in the car!"

Reaching down, AJ pulled a flat bottle of liquor out of the bar and twisted the cap off, tipping it back for a quick gulp before answering, "I needed a drink...and a few other things." Turning his head, he looked straight into Kyle's face and stated flatly, "Besides, I didn't think you were coming back."

The dead tone in AJ's voice sparked a rush of guilt and concern, and Kyle blurted out, "Listen, you've got to go to the cops. Right now...because this is only going to get worse."

Coughing a little from a second hefty swig of the inexpensive scotch, AJ exclaimed incredulously, "Worse than being involved in a suicide that looks like murder...and, oh yes, let's not forget the murder that _was_ a murder?" He shook his head in disbelief at what he obviously considered Kyle's naivete and spat bitterly, "So I'm just supposed to waltz into the nearest police station and explain how I really didn't do anything wrong. Have any bright ideas how to convince them it's all a huge coincidence that I was anywhere near the person they're looking for...or those people when they died...and, by the way, I'd like to go back to Zurich now?"

Kyle shook his head and reached into his pocket, pulling out the small leather-covered folder. He shoved it in AJ's direction, insisting, "Look, here's my passport. Show that to them, tell them everything. Show them the 20,000 and explain that that I hired you...or tell them that I kidnapped you if you need to. They're going to believe you." His voice dropped to a worried mutter, "They have to believe you."

AJ ignored the passport and the words and offered the bottle to Kyle.

Kyle brushed it aside impatiently and shouted, "Look, you can't just sit here, it's not safe!"

AJ rolled his eyes and took another drink before capping the bottle and returning it to the bag. "Safe? Did you even look at those pictures? They're from inside the American embassy, you idiot. Think about it. Who the hell has access to that kind of data? How can you possibly believe I'd be safer with the police when it's some fucking government agency involved?"

Kyle dropped his forehead to the wheel in frustration and groaned, "Look, I'm just trying to do the right thing. I don't want you to get hurt."

AJ shifted with a noise, and then Kyle felt his hand on his shoulder, gently squeezing as he sighed, "It's obviously too late for that now, Kyle. I think the only chance we have is to stick together...and figure out what the hell is going on."

Unwilling to meet AJ's eyes, Kyle shook his head, still propped against the steering wheel. "I...I don't know...I can't run with you. I don't even know who or what it is I'm hiding from. If I leave Paris now, I may never find out. I've got to stay here." Sitting up with a rush, he turned to AJ and worried aloud, "Damn it! You've already been hurt once because I got you mixed up in all this. What...what if I can't keep you safe, AJ?"

AJ's gaze sharpened as he studied Kyle's face and, after a few moments, he explained, "Listen, I have to admit this whole thing took me by surprise but, considering what just happened, it's not just keeping me safe that you need to worry about. Whoever that was that came through the window wasn't looking to ask questions. At this point, I think it's more a case of helping each other to stay alive, don't you?"

Absorbed in their intense discussion, Kyle almost missed the cluster of police and security guards that had gathered outside the train station and were pointing in their direction. Glancing in the rear view mirror, he twisted to pull a map out from behind his seat and began folding it carefully. Keeping his voice quietly casual, he asked, "You take good care of this car?"

AJ was puzzled at the abrupt change in subject. "What do you mean?"

"I noticed the tires felt a little splashy on the way over here."

AJ shrugged and agreed, "It's in good shape for the most part. I did notice it's been pulling a little to the right."

Kyle handed him the map and pointed to the section of the city they were currently in and then to another location. "We're heading there.

As AJ studied the map, Kyle watched the mirror...and the flashing lights that suddenly appeared behind them. Sirens began to sound off ahead of them and another police car pulled across the road, blocking the road off between them and the train station. AJ looked up just as the doors of the car in front opened and police officers emerged to start walking toward them. Kyle heard the thump behind them that signaled the other officers had done the same. He reached for the keys in the ignition as he looked over into cool blue eyes. "Last chance, AJ."

AJ nodded and turned away, reaching toward the door...and then he pulled the seat belt over his shoulder to secure it. He looked back at Kyle and smirked, asking with studied casualness, "Well, what are you waiting for?"

Shaking his head at the other man, Kyle started the engine and threw the car into reverse, curving out from the curb, narrowly avoiding the car behind and sending policemen scattering. Both groups ran for their vehicles as Kyle yanked the Mini into a one hundred-eighty degree turn, popped it into gear, and headed away from the train station, the tires squealing as the tiny car darted away from an oncoming truck.

A sharp turn to the right and they were rocketing down a narrow side street, narrowly missing two hapless motorcyclists and, as they burst out onto the next main road, they sent pedestrians scattering with blasts of Mini's horn. They skidded around another truck unloading boxes, and then pelted the wrong way down a one-way street to merge onto a wide boulevard split by a tree-lined median. The traffic was heavy at that time of day, and Kyle yanked the steering wheel hard to drive over the curb and half on the sidewalk, narrowly missing street lamps and benches to pass cars recklessly on the right.

Sirens chased them, wailing out warnings as the police vehicles dodged innocent bystanders. Motorcycles joined the chase, adding revving engines to the mix as the mist turned cobblestones and bricks into slick hazards menacing the stability of stops and turns. Cars behind, motorcycles in front, and Kyle cursed low and viciously when they were blocked in, and then an alleyway offered slim refuge. They screamed left and sprinted inside, leaving their pursuers meeting in the middle...and contending for the honor of pursuit. It defaulted to the motorcycles, since the Mini had barely six inches clearance on both sides and the larger police cruisers would never fit. Kyle wrestled the car into submission, and he never touched the brickwork hemming them in on either side, never slowed. Flashes of memory matched to the map he'd scanned, and he winced at the sight of green foliage at the end of the narrowing passage. He spared a quick glance at AJ, whose white knuckles on the dashboard betrayed his attempt at appearing calm in the face of imminent vehicular manslaughter. Kyle's voice shook a little as he began, "So...."

Eyes never leaving the road ahead, AJ prompted, "What?"

Time had run out. Kyle explained in a rush, "We've got a...bump coming up. Hang on."

The road dropped out beneath them with a jolt, and only a miracle kept the car from flipping forward down the long flight of steps they'd entered. The thudding jerking headlong rush downward threatened to shake both the car and men into their component parts, but Kyle merely floored it and kept the forward momentum steady until sixty jarring steps later, they reached the cross street and juddered to a stalling halt. A quick restart and Kyle shifted into second, and then muscled them off the sidewalk and back into the street. A crash from above signaled the demise of at least one of the pursuing motorcycles but, unfortunately, not all, and sirens heralded the renewed pursuit.

The left-hand side of the street suffered the next onslaught as Kyle took them up over the curb again, pedestrians scattering and trash bins flying, the motorcycle paralleling them in the street. Ahead, another police car pulled across to block the entire road, and Kyle cut back in and behind the motorcycle followed by a quick hairpin turn to the right. They ended up racing down an exit ramp to a lower level highway, leaving the motorcycle zooming ahead without them, and the police car pointing in the wrong direction to follow.

The police weren't stymied for long, and they were after the Mini once more, fox and hounds driving down _another_ two-lane one-way _ extremely busy_ street, the wily prey sending the other cars scattering to trip up the baying hunters. Another police car was lost in a collision with a panel van, and then a motorcycle slid into parked cars earning a wince when Kyle spared a glance into the rear-view mirror. Cars kept piling up around the growing obstruction behind them, but one motorcycle made it around on the sidewalk and kept on coming. They darted down another narrow alley, with their single pursuer close behind, and then across another boulevard, just missing the unlucky car that cut off the motorcycle. Using the small reprieve, Kyle switched to the right side of the street, staying off the sidewalk for a change.

The motorcyclist had made it around the blocking car and was paralleling the Mini on the left-hand side of the wide avenue, but splitting his attention between oncoming traffic and his quarry proved too difficult, and their final pursuer went flying over the hood of a car that suddenly emerged from a side street. Another turn, another alley, and then another main road and they were suddenly off the street and scooting down an exit ramp underground, screeching to a halt in a parking slot at the back...where the lights were dimmer.

Kyle slipped the car into neutral and turned off the engine, to sit staring out the windshield at the graffiti-splashed cinder blocks. Releasing a shuddering breath, AJ looked down at the crumpled map in his hand and carefully set it on the console between them without a word. After a few moments, Kyle began to speak slowly and carefully, "We can never come back to this car."

AJ offered no argument. "No."

"Get whatever you need. I'll start wiping it down."

"Right."

Neither one of them moved.

Finally, prying his hand off the steering wheel, Kyle blinked and noted, "I need to find us someplace to rest. I need to think."

That declaration triggered an objection on AJ's part. "_We_ need to think."

Kyle turned stress-widened eyes toward his unexpected partner, "Yeah, you're right." A quick scan and he asked, "Do you have a hat?"

Brushing a hand over the red hair that had first caught Kyle's attention at the embassy, AJ grinned. "To cover my hair?"

Kyle nodded. "Just until we can...change it."

AJ pulled a black watch cap out of his jacket pocket and tugged it over the distinctive red, instantly changing his features.

"Good. That's good." Kyle blinked at the transformation, something nudging at the edges of his memory. "You look good."

With a chuckle, AJ poked Kyle in the shoulder to break him out of his daze. "All right, we've established that I look good. Let's get going." He unbuckled and got out of the car, taking his bag with him.

Shaking himself back into action, Kyle unbuckled and began wiping every surface inside the car with the rag AJ had located for him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a computer bag join his duffel on the concrete, and then a second soft-sided case. He worked steadily at erasing their presence and tried not to think about the distinct possibility that AJ would end up an unfortunate statistic. Appreciating what the other man had done for him, and regretting his involvement, Kyle vowed to himself to do everything possible to make sure that it didn't happen.

That would be one memory he could definitely live without.

 

***

Chapter Eight

***

The room was small, but scrupulously clean, and AJ set his bags down with a small sigh of relief before taking off his jacket with a slight wince of discomfort. The double bed looked inviting after the exhausting events of the last day or so, but he knew that if he didn't shower first, he wouldn't be able to fall asleep easily. Rummaging in his suitcase for clean clothes, he dropped them on the bed and proceeded to strip out of the blood-soaked shirt, sitting on the bed to remove his boots before unbuttoning his jeans.

After tossing the boots into a corner of the room, AJ stilled, wondering what he was doing, how he'd managed to end up on the run from the police and...someone or something else. It was supposed to have been just a simple drive to Paris, an impulse born of frustration and boredom. It wasn't as if he'd needed the money, but there had been something about Kyle.... Shaking himself free of reflection, he finished pulling off the remaining items and headed to the bathroom for an eagerly anticipated shower.

He'd left the bathroom door half-open, but the noise of the spray covered other sounds enough that a knock against the wood still startled him. "AJ?" The voice in the outer room was muffled, but still familiar. "Are you okay in there?"

Sticking his head out around the shower curtain, AJ called back, "I'm fine, I just needed to get clean. Did you find everything? Any problem getting the room number?"

"I just asked for the new guest with bright jacket and the blue eyes. You should be more careful, you shouldn't have left the door unlocked for me." With enough twisting, AJ could see the room through the partially open door, and he watched as Kyle dropped plastic bags on the bed. His duffel joined AJ's suitcase on the floor. After looking around the room with interest, Kyle frowned at the bed. "I thought double meant there would be two beds."

Ducking back behind the curtain and returning his attention to the task of getting clean, AJ soaped himself up as he explained, raising his voice to be heard over the water. "Like a locked door is going to do any good...and they didn't have any available. I didn't think you wanted to split up into separate rooms, but...."

There was a pause before he heard Kyle's hurried response, "No...no, it's fine...if you don't mind." There nothing else for a minute or two, then Kyle's voice was right behind AJ, making him jerk and drop the soap in surprise. "I was right, that store had what we need. You should let me take a look at that...." Kyle had poked his head inside the bathroom, and he trailed off as AJ shut off the water and turned to display his back. Taking a step into the steamy room, Kyle marveled, "That...that looks almost healed?"

After he'd stepped out of the tub and wrapped a towel around his waist, AJ looked over his shoulder at Kyle, whose face held a hint of wonder as his hand ghosted over the pink skin of the wound left by the bullet just a few hours earlier. He watched for Kyle's reaction as he explained, "I'm a little _different_. I don't get sick and I heal very quickly."

Withdrawing his hand from his fascinated inspection, Kyle's eyes flicked up to AJ's face as he considered the information, and then Kyle flashed a quick grin of relief, "That's good to hear. I hated the idea of you being hurt because of me." As Kyle's eyes rose higher, they widened almost comically, and AJ was hard-pressed not to laugh. "You're...you...shaved your head?" Kyle's befuddled stare fed AJ's sense of the absurd and he smirked. "I think I've got the 'change my hair color' solution under control." He slid by a wide-eyed Kyle and out into the room.

"Why would you do that?" Kyle blurted out behind him. "I was just going to dye it black for you!"

Reaching down to the pile of discarded clothes, AJ retrieved something Kyle had obviously missed when he was looking around the room. Turning around, he couldn't resist a chuckle at the look of shock on Kyle's face. He slowly waved the auburn wig dangling from his hand and teased, "I guess the wig was worth every penny." He sobered a little and shook his head. "No, I've been bald since I was nine. I guess you could call it a 'freak accident,' since it was an unpredicted meteor shower that ended up creating a freak."

Before AJ finished speaking, Kyle opened the coat that he'd slipped on at the apartment. He dropped it to the floor and reached for the hem of the faded back t-shirt he was wearing. Puzzled at the look on Kyle's face and his halting actions, AJ couldn't help wondering when he glimpsed several holes in the shirt. When his eyes dropped to Kyle's chest, he gasped at the sight of scattered bruises in livid colors. The size and shape of them left little question as to the source. "Kyle? How...."

Ducking his head, as if ashamed to meet AJ's eyes, Kyle mumbled, "I'm a freak, too." He tossed the damaged shirt in the general direction of the wastebasket, but neither man looked to see if it made it inside. "I don't know when or how I got this way, but I guess that's why I didn't die when I was shot before."

The machine gun had stitched more than one red-purple row across Kyle's chest, and it was AJ's turn to reach out in wonder at Kyle's miraculous escape. He could feel the heat rising from the abused flesh under his hovering hand and he jerked back at Kyle's flinch when his fingertips grazed the edges of the bruise centered over Kyle's heart. He licked his lips and whispered, "You should be dead. If you...we'd both be...."

Kyle's hand covered AJ's and pressed it flat against him, concealing part of the evidence. AJ could detect the strong, increasingly rapid beat beneath his palm and noticed that the smooth skin was taking on a damp sheen as Kyle stood there motionless, waiting. Closing the distance remaining between them, AJ dipped his head and placed a gentle kiss on a bruise just below Kyle's collarbone. He could feel the leap of Kyle's heart under their hands, as well as hear the catch in his barely detectable breathing, and his tongue flickered out to taste salt, musk, and the metallic tang of pain. The next kiss to the next bruise, conjured a whisper that sounded like his name...and AJ smiled against the damaged skin.

The smile grew when Kyle's hands shifted to pull AJ close, delving under the slipping towel to knead the top of AJ's buttocks. AJ's lips skimmed upwards, stopping at the hollow of Kyle's neck to allow another taste, and then continuing until he was mouthing a clenched jaw. He breathed his question into the corner of Kyle's mouth. "Is this okay?"

The answer was an explosion. Kyle tilted his head to take AJ's mouth in a desperate clash of lips and tongue, while AJ's hands slid into Kyle's hair and held on tight as hours of tension and adrenaline released in a cascade of passion. Kyle's hands swept across AJ's body in frenzied motions, telegraphing the groans rumbling deep inside his marked chest. The towel was an early casualty, and AJ bit out a complaint about jeans scraping delicate skin. In self-defense, he loosened one hand to tear at the top button, colliding with Kyle's hand bent on the same frantic errand and, somehow, the two of them opened the jeans and then shoved them down far enough to free Kyle.

A lack of underwear worked in their favor and their hands were quickly put to better use. Sliding together in the warm, moist tunnel formed by their combined palms, their movements grew staccato, their lips and tongues stuttered with moans and curses. Pulling his mouth free, Kyle curled around AJ, his teeth closing on the side of AJ's neck as he shuddered, the bright pain and the hot spill slicking their hands triggering AJ's jerking release.

Their breathing slowed as they held each other up, Kyle licking AJ's abused skin in mute apology while their hands cupped sensitive flesh. Gradually, their pose softened into a loose hug and, with a final kiss, they drew apart. Kyle shoved his jeans down the rest of the way and then caught AJ's sticky hand in his to lead him into the bathroom without a word. The shower was perfunctory, and they both stumbled toward the bed after drying off haphazardly. Arms and legs were arranged to their mutual satisfaction, and then they both tumbled into sleep, hoping dreams would pass them by, and deliberately ignoring the incredible coincidence of their shared differences.

 

***

Chapter Nine

***

 

The scissors felt oddly light in his hand, insubstantial when tested against his skin. Opening the box with the pellets that the ship's doctor had removed left Kyle feeling a little dizzy, but the quick slice in the center of his chin seemed to indicate it should be possible to restore his original face. Possible...but not completely painless. Bright blood spilled over his hand as he hissed and probed beneath his flesh for the padding he'd detected earlier. Dropping the extracted material into the sink, he pressed the edges of the wound and the lid of the box closed at the same time.

"What the fuck are you doing?"

Jumping at the outburst, Kyle winced as he met AJ's eyes in the mirror. He'd thought the other man was still in the bed but, obviously, something had disturbed his exhausted slumber. Their first nap together had been short, interrupted by hunger. A silent dinner at a nearby bistro had been followed by a session with hair dye...and the scissors had been used in a more traditional fashion before they returned to bed. However, Kyle had been unable to relax. The darkened close-cropped hairstyle had sparked something in Kyle's memory, and he'd been driven to try to recover the remainder of his natural features after AJ had fallen asleep.

Wiping away the last of the blood from his chin and neck with a damp towel, Kyle examined the new cleft in his chin, watching the scar fading away to almost nothing as he haltingly explained, "I wanted...needed to see what I really look like...without all of the 'improvements' in place. Even scars are better than not recognizing my own face when I look in a mirror."

Advancing into the tiny room, AJ reached out, grasped Kyle's chin, and tilted his head to allow a closer examination. Without looking up into Kyle's eyes, he asked, "How did you manage the cut if bullets won't penetrate?" Dropping his hand, he shook his head, and then frowned as another question occurred to him. "Kyle, if they knew that bullets couldn't hurt you, then why send a gunman after you? Was it supposed to be a diversion of some sort?"

After a moment of silence, Kyle ventured, "Maybe whoever they are don't know that bullets won't work anymore." At AJ's disconcerted glance, Kyle hurried to justify his supposition, "I told you that when they pulled me out of the water, I'd been shot three times...and there were two bullets still in me. There were other...things, too, not just the cylinder that held the bank account information. These." He held out the box, waiting for AJ to take it from him. "The ship's doctor took these out of me, and then I started healing right away and my skin got tougher. I think I got faster and stronger, too."

Kyle watched as AJ opened the box, flinching with the pellets' exposure. "When they're close enough..." He held up the bloodied scissors as an example. "...I can cut into my skin again and then it heals when I close the box back up."

AJ looked between Kyle's face and the open box and questioned, "Does it hurt?"

Kyle nodded. "Yeah, but...." He turned back to look in the mirror, touching the padding below his high cheekbones, watching it shift away from his probing fingers. "...I have to...."

AJ's eyes narrowed at that bit of information. "I think there's another one of these...whatever they are...under the skin at the top of your neck. I felt it when I was rinsing the dye out of your hair."

Kyle's eyes widened in the mirror, and he immediately began to search for the remaining pellet. He couldn't feel anything underneath his fingertips and he flicked a glance at AJ, silently asking for help. Reaching out, AJ pushed Kyle's head down and forward until his chin rested on his chest and pressed into the notch at the base of his skull with his thumb. "Feel that?"

"Yes! Please, I need you to cut it out." Kyle blindly offered the scissors to AJ, his head still down, his neck vulnerable.

"No...at least, not yet. It'll just make it harder to work on your face."

"Oh, right." Kyle lifted his head and reversed his grip on the scissors, opening them enough to allow him to make the next cut.

"Wait! Let me get some ice first. We can at least numb...."

"No, no, it doesn't hurt that much, really. Just...can you hold the box open for me?"

Sighing, AJ relented, obviously unable to resist the plea in Kyle's eyes. "All right, but I have visions of someone finding all this blood and arresting me for your murder. Just don't blame me if I end up having nightmares. I'm sort of used to odd and freaky, but this is a little more than my usual."

Grinning in relief, Kyle assured him, "No problem. I'll work as fast as I can, and no one will ever know that we were here. I promise."

~/~

Kyle sat in the chair next to the window and watched AJ sleep, the morning sun layering light across AJ's oddly familiar face. It wasn't that he'd become accustomed to AJ's features, it was closer to a feeling that he _knew_ him from...before. There were shadows....

"Hey." A soft voice from the bed brought Kyle's thoughts back to the present. "Did you sleep?"

"Some. Thinking."

Sitting up, the sheets pooled at AJ's waist, and Kyle felt a tug of need as his hands remembered the heat and texture of smooth, flawless skin. Tamping it down, he smiled as AJ looked around and noticed that the night's chaos had been subdued. "You already cleaned the room?"

"Yeah. I wiped everything down for fingerprints...and disposed of all the blood and...you know, everything else from last night."

Stretching languidly, AJ grinned with a come-hither glance that focused Kyle's attention. "Why don't you come over here so I can examine the damage in the light of day?" When Kyle shook his head and remained where he was, AJ frowned. "Regrets?"

Forcing himself to look out the window, Kyle murmured, "No, just...." Closing his eyes, he searched for the right words, a way to help the other man understand. "Confused. Sometimes it feels as though we...." Unable to fight the pull any longer, he shifted in the chair and looked back to watch AJ's face change as he struggled with Kyle's words.

"It feels like we know each other. That somehow, somewhere we've met before." Flopping back down on the pillow, AJ stared up at the ceiling. "Looking at your face after you cut…just...yeah. I can't say for sure, but I have some ideas about that. I'll need to do some checking first. I just need to find a wireless connection for my laptop."

"What is it?"

Rolling over to face Kyle, AJ grinned. "Hey, I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you." The joke rang hollow and both men stilled, waiting. AJ sat up again and scrubbed a hand over his face. "Fuck, I..." His demeanor suddenly serious, he apologized. "Listen, I really do need to be careful, for both our sakes. It's not something that I can...."

Kyle waved the attempt away, his voice lighter as he assured AJ, "It's okay. I'm a walking secret, right?" He stood, but didn't move any closer. "We should get going."

Accepting Kyle's deliberate change of subject, AJ nodded. "Can I walk around or will I leave dangerous footprints?"

He smiled teasingly until Kyle gave in and responded with his own grin. "You can walk around, it's no problem. We'll just keep track of everything you touch."

Throwing back the sheet, AJ slid to the side of the bed and lowered his feet to the floor. "What if I stick to touching you?"

A sudden rush of heat behind his eyes forced Kyle to rub the irritation away. Images of AJ sliding down his body, his mouth dragging across his belly to take Kyle inside, flashed across his closed eyelids and battled with Kyle's desperate need to pursue his past. Clenching his jaw, he gritted out, "Listen, AJ, not now, okay?" Opening his eyes, he pleaded with the other man, "I need...I...." He took a deep breath, reasserting his control. "Before we leave the room, we need to make sure we're not leaving _anything_ behind. We'll have to dump your suitcase, along with anything else we don't absolutely need, so we can move fast if we need to."

As if finally realizing Kyle was serious, AJ reined in his teasing. "I take it you have someplace specific in mind?"

"I need to go to the hotel where John Michael Kane stayed, the Hotel Regina. If I _was_ him, then they're going to have some records. They might provide some clues."

Nodding in agreement, AJ rose from the bed. Naked and half-hard he sauntered over to the bathroom. Kyle stared after him and licked lips that had suddenly gone dry before continuing his explanation. "I have some ideas on how to get hold of them, but it's definitely complicated."

AJ paused in the bathroom doorway and glanced back over his shoulder, flashing a crooked smile. "Why's that? Because you're dead?"

Kyle sat back down with a thump, ran his hand back through his shorn hair, and agreed, "Yeah, because I'm...dead."

 

***

Chapter Ten

***

 

"AJ? What's wrong?" Kyle stood waiting a few yards ahead, his head tilted in apparent puzzlement at the sudden stop. AJ watched him quickly survey the quiet side street before walking back to ask in a low voice, "Did I miss something?" He also noticed Kyle had deliberately positioned himself between AJ and the curb, a shield of more-than-human flesh and blood.

Smiling in reassurance, AJ shook his head and pointed at a small sign in the café's window advertising internet availability with a minimum purchase. "I just found our first stop, likely one of many. Depending on what I access, I'll only be able to use a connection safely for fifteen, twenty minutes tops before we'll have to move to another location, so we should get started as soon as possible."

"But the hotel is just a few blocks away. Shouldn't we go there first, like we planned?" protested Kyle. Impatience seemed to underwrite every line of his body as he shifted the heavy duffel containing their consolidated possessions on his shoulder.

Placing a hand flat against Kyle's chest, AJ felt the tension slowly ease under his palm as he patiently explained, "I've been thinking about how to make things a little less complicated. Why take the chance someone's waiting for one of us to show up at the front desk asking questions, when all I have to do is pull up the billing records from here?"

Kyle leaned in a little closer, his breath soft against the side of AJ's face as he whispered, "You can do that?"

AJ couldn't help boasting a little when he detected a tinge of disbelief in Kyle's voice. "If I can't hack into a simple system like the Hotel Regina's, then we have an even bigger problem on our hands." He sobered as he considered the inherent danger associated with connecting to a particular network. "We'll see what I can come up with using the safer routines before I tackle the tougher systems. The longer I can keep them from figuring out what I'm looking for, the better off we'll be."

"When do _I_ get to find out what you're looking for?"

"Believe me; you're safer not knowing until I'm sure. If you're involved in what I think you are, we'll definitely be running, just like you said before, fast and far away. We'll have to hide and stay hidden until we can come up with a way to get both of us out of this mess…alive."

Kyle sighed and nodded. "Okay, we'll do it your way, for now." After a quick peck to AJ's cheek, along with an adjustment to AJ's nondescript black watch cap, Kyle withdrew and surveyed their surroundings before waving AJ inside with a whispered reminder. "Get the phone records, if you can. They might be helpful. I'll wait here and keep an eye out for any trouble."

AJ rolled his eyes at the not-so-subtle reminder. "I know what to look for. Just give me fifteen minutes on a halfway decent connection, and you'll have everything you need from the Hotel Regina."

~/~

AJ couldn't help strutting a little when he emerged from the café twenty-three minutes later with two copies of the hotel's phone records. "Got it. Piece of the proverbial cake. It actually took me longer to pay for my coffee and a cell phone than it did to grab the records. Now we need to go somewhere else, preferably the other side of the city, to make some calls and spend some time in ordinary online research. Someplace busy." Handing one copy to Kyle, along with the pre-paid cell phone, AJ tucked the other copy inside his laptop case, and then waved an arm to engage a passing taxi.

Kyle followed AJ into the taxi without a word, a quick grin AJ's only hint that Kyle was pleased with AJ's efforts. Leaning forward in the backseat, AJ supplied their destination, forcing himself to sound like the ordinary tourist that he and Kyle were dressed as. "Uh…Arc de Triumph, sill voo play." Ignoring Kyle's snigger at his deliberately bad accent, AJ settled back to look out the side window at the passing architecture. Kyle took the hint and did his own sightseeing, although AJ could feel the tension in the body next to his and understood Kyle was scanning for more than tourist attractions.

~/~

Seated in the prime window spot in their fourth internet café, AJ could easily see Kyle sitting on a much less comfortable bench across the street. He'd been making slow and steady progress on his research while Kyle called the numbers captured during Kane's stay at the hotel. With each new piece of information, it was becoming clear that AJ was rapidly approaching the point when he'd be forced to decide whether or not he'd trust his secrets to Kyle. Experience warned AJ away, but something else urged him to reveal all and risk betrayal.

As AJ absently watched, waiting for the latest search to return, Kyle closed the phone and made a note on his copy of numbers, then got up to walk across the street, dodging a few cars along the way. A few moments later, Kyle shifted the duffel and slid into the seat opposite AJ, a grin lighting his face. "Okay, I've got a lead in Paris, the rest are in Marseilles or dead ends."

"What is it?"

"It's a he. Simon Roland, the head of Alliance Security's Maritime Division. After I explained there'd been an accident and I needed another copy of whatever I'd gotten from them before, they set up an appointment with Roland." The grin switched to a frown as Kyle continued. "It's about three hours from now and, based on the address and the number of people I had to go through to talk to the guy, I have a feeling these clothes aren't going to cut it." He waved a hand over the grey hooded sweatshirt and jeans he was wearing and winced.

AJ nodded in agreement, as he saved the search results and then closed his laptop. "Guess we're going speed shopping. After all, we don't want them looking too closely at your face because your clothes don't match what I saw in your closet."

~/~

Latest disguise in place, a black leather jacket over a lavender silk shirt and tailored black pants and sans hat, AJ waited impatiently around the corner of a baroque-fronted office building. He was thankful for the mirrored sunglasses that would hide at least a portion of his agitation over Kyle's late return. They had agreed to meet there an hour from Kyle's appointment with Roland, allowing AJ time for more research before their rendezvous, but Kyle was seven minutes late and AJ's imagination was supplying vivid images of what might have gone wrong based on what he'd just found out.

AJ's increasingly bloody scenarios evaporated when Kyle suddenly appeared with a chastened look in his eyes. "Hey, sorry I'm late." Manila envelope in hand, Kyle gestured down the side street and started walking as he explained, "Roland was running late, but it all worked out and I'm pretty sure I wasn't under surveillance or followed."

Slipping his laptop case over his shoulder, AJ took a few hurried steps to catch up and ask, "So they accepted you as Kane?"

"Yeah, looks like I'm definitely Kane," Kyle affirmed with a quick nod in AJ's direction. "I mean, I just had a meeting as Kane. Roland knew who I was, although he looked at me a little funny, probably because of the hair and my…." Kyle pointed toward his face, where newly defined cheekbones accentuated a strong jaw line with a cleft chin and eyes that appeared a little wider after Kyle's reverse plastic surgery. "So, according to the passport and the landlady…" Kyle winced at the memory, "I'm Kent, but also definitely Kane."

"Well, that's…."

Kyle interrupted before AJ could finish, blurting out, "Fucked up. That's what it is." He flicked a finger against the envelope, asking. "Why would I…Kane…want blueprints of a yacht with all the cameras and security systems...."

AJ grabbed Kyle's arm and jerked him to a halt, Kyle's camel hair overcoat flapping open in a sudden breeze that emphasized the chilling facts of AJ's discovery. "That's not what I was going to say, although you're right about it being fucked up. While I was checking out the accident the hotel manager mentioned, which I should have done _before_ you walked into that building, I located John Michael Kane. His body is in a Paris morgue."

"That's…." Kyle stared at AJ, his eyes narrowing as the implications settled into place. "So if I'm Kane, who's in that morgue?"

"Exactly."

 

***

Chapter Eleven

***

 

Kyle flipped to the next page of the newspaper he was hiding behind and shifted his lean to a different section of the bus shelter. Waiting for AJ outside the morgue was proving difficult; Kyle knew he would feel better if he were taking the risk. Resisting the urge to peek over his Le Monde for what seemed like the hundredth time, Kyle startled at the sound of AJ's voice, as clear as it would be if he were standing next to Kyle.

"That's right, Kane. John Michael Kane."

Realizing he'd acquired yet another improvement on the base model, Kyle held the newspaper a little higher and took advantage of his new skill. The sound of shuffled paper preceded a second voice, a man who answered AJ in a mix of French and English. "Ah, oui. C'est Number 121."

"I need to see the body, please."

"Ah, non, non. My boss, he, I am not...."

Kyle recognized the slight crinkle of a bill before hearing AJ say, "Here, this should help you decide."

"Okay. Follow me."

The click of heels receded slightly and then echoed inside what was probably a larger room, followed by a thump-click. Kyle detected an edge to AJ's voice when he asked, "Where is it?"

"Je ne sais pas…I…"

When the third voice joined in, complaining in strident French about breaking the morgue's rules, Kyle disposed of his newspaper in a nearby trash bin, and then jogged across the street and up the stairs to the morgue. Along the way, he heard the first Frenchman explain that the American had wanted to see the body that was no longer in locker 121. He walked through the inner door just in time to hear that, according to the second man, Kane's brother had picked up the body the day before.

AJ glanced in Kyle's direction when he walked into the storage room, but the attendant was too busy arguing with the supervisor to notice. "It can't be. I checked. There's no record of the pickup in the register."

The supervisor, however, did see Kyle and shouted at him in aggravated, accented English. "And another one comes! This is no patisserie, I tell you! People call, make appointments, must follow rules. Everyone must sign the book. This is a serious place, serious work. It's not just to come in whenever you like!"

Kyle backed up a step, raising his hands in a conciliatory gesture. "You're right, you're absolutely right. We didn't sign in." Reversing direction, he walked behind the reception desk and flipped open the book in question, flipping pages to the last one with writing.

The supervisor followed with waving hands. "What are you doing? Go now!"

"I'm going to sign in, like you said." Kyle ran his finger down the page, and then looked up to catch AJ's attention. "Hey buddy, go wait outside." With a jerk of his head and a flick of his eyes, Kyle directed AJ out the door, feeling relieved when AJ immediately complied.

"Non, non, you do not belong here. Leave!" The supervisor grabbed the book and Kyle released it, but not before tearing out the page that he'd been reading. "What have you done?" the supervisor shouted, attempting to retrieve the ragged piece of paper. "The rules!"

Kyle ignored him and bolted out the door, catching up with AJ at the outer doors, just in time for Kyle to open them so they could slip out together. Grabbing AJ's elbow, Kyle escorted him down the stairs, hurrying him around the corner and down the side street for a block before slowing to a walk.

Yanking his arm away from Kyle, AJ asked in a low irritated voice, "What the hell just happened in there?"

Kyle shrugged a little sheepishly before answering. "I was standing out there worried about you and suddenly I could hear you, like you were standing right there."

"Wait. You could hear me?" AJ's eyes widened as he came to a dead stop to stare at Kyle. "Inside the building?"

Kyle nodded. "Yeah, surprised me, too. Anyway, I could tell it wasn't working, so I came inside to help."

"Okay, we'll table the super hearing thing. For now." AJ followed as Kyle set off again at a pace that wouldn't attract attention. "And that page you're holding in your hand? The one I'm assuming you ripped out of the book?"

"It shows that Mkwana Wombosi was at the morgue…to see Kane's body." When AJ cocked his head in question, Kyle released the bombshell. "He's the owner of the boat according to the Alliance packet I picked up. He has to know something about whatever this is. We need to find him."

~/~

By the time they arrived across the street from the deposed dictator's residence, it was dusk, which did nothing to hide the flashing lights and bright yellow tape of the police barrier surrounding it. An oddly quiet crowd had gathered outside, with only the occasional wail of a mourning woman rising over the sound of the passing traffic, and it was clear Kyle and AJ had arrived too late.

As AJ and Kyle retreated, intending to regroup somewhere they'd be less noticeable, they passed a news kiosk, and the situation at Wombosi's house became clearer. After purchasing one of the evening editions, Kyle scanned the front-page story covering Wombosi's assassination, AJ peering around Kyle's shoulder to read along with him. When Kyle reached the section detailing an earlier attempt, he couldn't hold back a low groan of dismay. AJ looked sideways at him, his face revealing a matching consternation as he pointed out, "This says that Wombosi told police that..."

Kyle interrupted, his tone flat and disheartened with the weight of possible guilt. "...three weeks ago a man came aboard his yacht in Marseilles and tried to kill him." The newspaper crumpled in his fist. "He also claimed that he chased the man off the boat and shot him in the back, at least twice, maybe more."

Stuffing the newspaper in a trash bin, Kyle set off down the street at a pace that forced AJ to jog after him, laptop case banging against his hip. He finally he caught up enough to say, "Kyle? Stop. We should talk."

Kyle kept walking, although he did slow down to a reasonable walk. "What's there to talk about, AJ?" he finally gritted out, the words sharp and hard-hitting. "I just found out that I'm probably an assassin."

With a burst of speed, AJ managed to pull ahead and then force Kyle to either stop or run him down. Kyle opted for the latter. Standing in front of Kyle with his arms crossed and his head at a slight tilt, AJ said in an irritatingly calm voice, "Well, that would be a good place to start, don't you think?"

~/~

They were both silent in the back of the taxi, sunk deep inside their thoughts on the way to the train station. When they arrived, AJ followed Kyle out, thankfully not offering any objection when Kyle pointed at a bus shelter and told him, "Wait for me there."

Inside the station, Kyle scanned the exits for watchers, and then resisted the lure of the departures board to head for the lockers. The red bag caught for a moment before pulling free, but that was the only difficulty Kyle encountered until he passed by an information kiosk where a police officer was handing over a small stack of posters. A quick glimpse sent his pulse rate soaring, and he had to force himself to keep to the same casually sedate pace toward the exit.

Once outside, he hurried to the empty police car parked a few yards away, slammed his elbow through the side window, and then reached inside for a copy of the poster he'd seen in the station. He heard a gasp behind him and, wheeling about, he grabbed AJ's arm and hurried him away, needing them out of sight before the police officer returned.

"What are you doing?" AJ protested as Kyle yanked him along the street. "Why did you…"

Stopping in the shadow of a closed shop, Kyle thrust the poster at AJ. "Here. This is why."

"Fuck." AJ whispered, his hand shaking a little as he examined the paper bearing pictures of both of them, evidence that the authorities considered them a pair, not the separate sheets their earlier attacker had carried. The notice carried the additional warning of _Armed and Dangerous_, and AJ's voice deepened, anger bleeding through as he cursed again. "Fuck, fuck, fuck." Crumpling the paper, he carelessly threw it away before taking off down the street at a fast trot, then breaking into a run.

"AJ! Wait!" Kyle caught up with him easily and cornered him against a shop with an iron grid drawn down for the evening.

Taking a defensive stance, AJ shouted, "Let me go!"

"I can't." Kyle bracketed AJ's body with his arms and absorbed the blows from AJ's fists and feet without retaliating. "I can't do that, AJ." He pressed in closer, stilling AJ's struggles with his greater height and weight, hoping that any passerby would assume they were lovers taking advantage of the shadows.

With a final futile lunge, AJ subsided, his voice weary as he said, "You don't understand. I can't afford to keep making mistakes. I've already made too many when it comes to you and I'm going to end up dead because of it."

Kyle flinched at the accusation and then lowered his head to whisper a plea and a promise. "Stay with me, just for now. I need to make sure you're going to be okay. Whatever we do, we have to do it together. We have to...."

Jerking his head away from Kyle's, AJ protested, "We! The only reason they're looking for me is because I was stupid enough to fall for a…." AJ shook his head and resumed his struggles. "God, I am so damn fucked!"

"You need to trust me!" Pressing closer still, Kyle took a deep breath to restore his control, then calmly stated the facts AJ needed to accept. "You need to trust me. We both need to get out of the city before the police find us, or worse, the people who took our pictures in the embassy, the same people who killed Wombosi, because it wasn't me shooting this time, they will find us first and they're going to kill us, too."

"They're the same people you're working for," AJ spat back.

Sickened by the possibility that he'd been a killer in the past, Kyle lowered his head against AJ's, wishing the previous night's easy acceptance had stayed a little longer. Allowing some of his desperation through, he pleaded, "Not anymore, I swear it. Listen, I will take you wherever you need to go, and I will leave you there, if I think you'll be safe. After that, you can do whatever you want. You'll never have to see me again if that's what you want." Drawing back, he gently forced AJ's chin up so that he could see Kyle's face, hoping the truth was visible in his eyes. "Anywhere but here, because if we stay in this city, something in this Swiss cheese brain of mine that I can't quite pin down, that something is warning me that we…will…die."

AJ looked at Kyle, saying nothing, but his muscles relaxed and finally his head dropped in a quick nod. With a sigh of relief, Kyle released him and then guided him down the street, his hand firmly planted in the small of AJ's back. After a minute or two, AJ asked, "So, do you have someplace specific in mind, or are we going to just walk all night?"

"How about you? Any ideas?" Close to running on empty, Kyle shook his head and chuckled. "I suppose we could close our eyes and point to a map. That'd keep it random enough to confuse them."

AJ huffed a laugh in return before saying, "Yeah, I know a place. It's outside of Lyon, in the country. Now, any bright ideas on how we get there, since they appear to be watching the trains and buying or renting a car will be next to impossible?"

"Actually, I do," Kyle answered as he steered AJ down a dim-lit side street. "Hot-wiring seems to be one of my more useful memories."

 

***

Chapter Twelve

***

An hour or so into their felonious retreat, AJ decided to take the plunge and break the silence in the car. It wasn't that he'd deliberately chosen not to speak up to then, rather that he'd been distracted by his thoughts. His too-easy acceptance of Kyle and their situation bothered AJ. He'd never been one to trust without cause, yet something about Kyle had immediately appealed to him, short-circuiting AJ's usual caution spawned by ruinous experience. Even with the latest revelations, Kyle remained the exception to AJ's number one rule: trust no one without cause. Therefore, they needed to talk.

"We'll need to stop for gas soon, probably in Orleans. Either this is broken or you picked the worst gas guzzler in the lot." AJ tapped the gauge in question, then darted a look at Kyle to catch his reaction.

Kyle turned his head to look at AJ and shrugged. "Not like I could ask the owner if there were any quirks before I 'borrowed' it." He flashed a grin at AJ. "At least it's roomier than the second one I grabbed."

"Have to agree with you, it was a much-needed upgrade." AJ chuckled at the memory of Kyle folded into a geriatric Fiat, knees nearly touching his ears because the seat wouldn't go back. "I'm assuming switching the plates was to help keep the police off our tail long enough to hide this in Victoria's garage?"

"Yeah, although traveling at night means there's fewer cars for them to check, so it's a good thing the owners won't be reporting them stolen until morning."

The conversational ice broken, AJ shifted to a new subject. "Listen, I'm sorry about the meltdown back there. I…I guess it all caught up to me at once, which is odd because it's not as if I haven't problems with people being after me before. I guess it was because they usually attack me financially or academically, not physically."

Kyle shifted in his seat, as if what AJ had revealed sparked Kyle's interest. "Academically?"

"Let's just say that a few well-placed rumors can remove any chance of a dissertation making it through committee, let alone legitimate offers of employment. The financial happens to be why I was at the embassy, trying to clear up the latest bureaucratic logjam." AJ grimaced, tapping out his frustration with fingers atop the wheel. "My…father has a very long reach when it comes to making my life miserable."

"Your father?"

AJ detected more than a hint of disbelief underlying Kyle's question. Unfortunately, he was used to it. "He's convinced that he can force me to bow down to his authority and join the family business, and I'd rather…." AJ sighed and laughed under his breath before admitting with an edge of cynicism, "You know, I can't think of anything sufficiently demoralizing. I guess that says it all."

Kyle's response was quiet. "I'm…sorry," and AJ accepted the warm clasp on his shoulder with a quick nod and a resolve not to share anything else for at least another 100 kilometers or if he started falling asleep, whichever came first.

~/~

Kyle's sudden gasp and jerk to waking startled AJ enough that he swerved onto the shoulder of the road for a few seconds. After he'd guided the car back to the straight and narrow, AJ glanced at Kyle and asked, "You okay?"

Kyle scrubbed a hand down his face and muttered, "Yeah, just another one of those…dreams." He let his head drop back against the seat with a sigh. "They're so real. Can't help thinking they mean…something."

AJ considered for a moment and then suggested, "I'm no psychologist but, considering your amnesia, maybe you're remembering people or events in your past. It might help if you talked about them."

"Maybe." Kyle's voice was low and hesitant as he revealed what he'd seen. "I get the impression of heat, a fire, ashes swirling in the air, then there's a boy on the ground in front of me with…his hair's falling off and blowing away, red curls…a man with long hair and a beard…and then there's the pain…."

AJ clenched the wheel as Kyle's dream supplied another piece of the puzzle that had been troubling him. Too many questions spilled free to interrupt before AJ could dam the flood. "The man. Is his hair brown? Do you remember anything else? A name maybe, a building, or a room?"

"Yes? I mean, yeah, the man's hair was brown. A room, maybe. White, all white except for the metal…." Kyle groaned and began to rub his temples. "It's that damn headache again."

Deciding that any further discussion in a moving vehicle was too risky, AJ flicked on the turn signal and began to slow the car. "Listen, there's a rest area coming up. We should take a break, stretch our legs, maybe even catch a nap since I'm probably not going to be able to find the place in the dark."

"I can drive if you're too tired," Kyle offered, his voice muffled behind hands still rubbing his temples.

"No, that's okay." AJ maneuvered around a parked tractor-trailer to turn into the parking lot. "I prefer being the one behind the wheel, and besides, you've got a headache."

"Okay. I'm not going to fight you for it." Dropping one hand, Kyle pointed toward the front window. "Park back by those trees, so we won't be so noticeable." As soon as AJ braked to a stop and reached for the ignition wires hanging under the dashboard, Kyle popped open his door. "Sorry, I've really got to take a leak." He got out, closing the door behind him, and then puzzled AJ by loping into the trees instead of crossing the lot to the restroom. AJ's suspicion that Kyle was trying to avoid the bright security lights was confirmed when Kyle returned and threw something that took out the nearest light, adding to the shadows surrounding the car. Kyle didn't say a word when he climbed back into the car, and AJ regretted there was insufficient light to see his face.

Shoving his seat back as far as possible, AJ reclined it a notch, hoping to avoid a stiff neck if he managed to fall asleep. He closed his eyes, grateful for the respite, and then asked, "Does the name 'Willamette Research' sound at all familiar to you?"

He heard Kyle shift in the seat next to him before answering, "No, I don't think so. Why?"

"Because I can't help wondering if my father is involved in all this, I mean your problem, not just mine." AJ stroked his naked skull before dropping his hand to rest across his abdomen. "He's the reason I wear the wig whenever I need to use my identification. All my photo ID's have been taken with hair. It makes it easier for me to go incognito. I just leave it off. Even though I'm finding it hard to believe he authorized a hit on me, he's most likely the one who supplied the second picture on the poster, the one where I'm bald. I'm pretty certain it was one taken a few years back, before I left the States."

"What does that have to do with this Willamette?"

"My father established Willamette Research to study the mutagenic effects of radiation. He called it Willamette, after the largest meteorite found in the US, to deflect attention from the fact that the bulk of the research was on the Smallville, Kansas meteorites."

"I'm guessing Smallville's where you ended up…changed."

Relieved that he didn't need to spell it out, AJ agreed with a simple, "Got it in one." After a moment, he continued. "I spent almost two years in the Willamette labs, along with others who'd been affected, but I was one of the lucky ones. I wasn't dangerous, so I was allowed to leave and resume my grooming as heir to my father's corporate throne. As soon as I could, I put a lot of distance between us and stayed there, because I didn't want anything to do with what I suspected my father was developing in those labs."

There was silence for a few moments, then Kyle choked out, "And you think I'm one, too. One of those mutants."

AJ ignored the question in Kyle's voice to ask one of his own. "Have you noticed anything else 'new and improved' besides the hearing?"

There was a thump, likely against the dashboard, and AJ instinctively turned his head and opened his eyes to see what had happened. All he could make out was a hunched shape; Kyle had turned his own face toward the side window, distancing himself as he spoke in a monotone. "You mean besides the impossible speed and strength and skin that can't be cut?"

AJ grimaced at the memory of the first car Kyle had 'unlocked.' Thankfully, the money they'd left in the glove box would more than cover what would be a substantial repair bill. "Yes, besides those. It would be helpful to know for the future."

"What future would that be, AJ?" Kyle sounded hopeless, and AJ reached out with thinking, placing his palm against Kyle's shuddering back. "I'm a goddamn weapon."

"Were." AJ rubbed the rock-hard muscles beneath his hand as he tried to reassure Kyle. "You _were_ a weapon. Maybe. We don't know anything for sure, yet."

"I'm not stupid. Everything points to…." Kyle twisted in the seat, dislodging AJ's hand. "Here. You should keep this with you." After fumbling for a moment, Kyle grasped AJ's hand and pressed an object against the palm before folding AJ's fingers around it. "We know these weaken me, and if you need to…."

The metallic rattle of the box in AJ's fist confirmed his suspicions. "I won't need these, Kyle."

AJ was tempted to flick on the overhead light so he could see Kyle's face, the lack of visual cues disorienting, especially when Kyle insisted, "You don't know that. You don't know what will happen if I suddenly get my memory back."

"I know what you've told me and I know what I've seen." AJ thought for a moment, and then pointed out with a lilt of dark humor, "Every time you've picked up a gun, you end up getting rid of it instead of using it. I have to believe that's not a desirable trait in an accomplished assassin. For all we know, Wombosi was your first job and you failed on purpose."

The diversion worked, and AJ could feel the tension in the air recede. Kyle settled back in his seat with a sigh and said, "Okay. Okay. I get your point. I still want you to keep the box."

"I will. For now." AJ tucked the box in his jacket pocket and allowed his head to relax against the seat again. He checked his watch, surprised that it wasn't later after everything that had happened that day and night. "Wake me up in two hours, okay? That should get us there by daylight."

"You got it." Kyle's voice still sounded a little rough, but also much calmer. "And AJ? Thanks."

Weariness sweeping over him, AJ simply reached across and patted Kyle's thigh, and then left his hand there, savoring the warmth of the muscle under his palm as he fell into sleep.

 

***

Chapter Thirteen

***

 

"Finally. I was beginning to think I missed a turn somewhere."

Kyle could understand the note of relief in AJ's voice, as the car crawled down a rutted dirt lane toward a thatch-roofed cottage flanked by several small outbuildings. It had been almost an hour since they'd left the A71 for increasingly smaller and rougher roads without street markers.

The sight of smoke rising from the cottage's chimney gave rise to a different concern.

"I thought you said no one would be here, AJ." Kyle shifted uneasily in his seat when he spotted a swing set in addition to the child's sled propped against the side of the dwelling. "It looks like there's kids."

AJ's answer was lost under the explosion of barking golden retriever that rocketed from the main door. The woman that stood holding it open looked puzzled for a moment, then her face lit and she followed the dog to the car with a happy wave and cry of, "Lex!"

"And that's Victoria." With a sigh and shake of his head, AJ got out of the car to meet her, and Kyle quickly followed suit, wondering at the different name for a moment until he recalled the poster. It appeared that Alexander J. Luthor went by 'Lex' as well as 'AJ,' and Kyle found it oddly comforting finding out that he wasn't the only one with multiple names.

With a "Simon, sit!" the leaping dog was disposed of, and then Kyle watched with a surprising tinge of jealousy as AJ was enfolded in a hug, face buried in a spill of long brown hair. After a quick peck to AJ's cheek, Victoria drew away to exclaim, "Well, this is a happy surprise. It's been over what, five…no…six years."

"At least. It was that reception at the…" AJ broke off that thread to explain, "Victoria, to be honest, I didn't think you'd be here." AJ pointed to Kyle as he walked around the car to join them. "We were just going to squat for a day or two and then move on. In fact, since you _are_ here, we should probably do that now."

Victoria pouted for a moment before announcing, "Well, that's just rubbish." She began to tug AJ toward the house, smiling when he gave in and followed her. "There's plenty of room. Mark won't be down until the weekend, but I know he'd be thrilled to see you. It's been too long."

Kyle and the dog looked after them without moving, Kyle feeling as if he needed to wait to be included in the invitation to go inside, while knowing he didn't. A shrill voice, from just inside the door, finally shifted them both into motion, Kyle barely managing to suppress his laughter at the young girl's demand.

"Mummy! Hurry up! Davy says he needs a wee!"

~/~

Kyle could see Victoria and AJ watching them through the kitchen window. He was glad Victoria was cautious enough not to simply allow a strange man to walk away with her children, even though he'd arrived with an old friend of hers. Curious as to what they were talking about, Kyle used his new ability to tune into their conversation while still pushing Sarah's swing and grinning at Davy's attempts to throw a ball for the eager dog.

"…admit, back when we were hanging out here, hiding from our respective pissed-off parents, I never pictured you like this."

Victoria sounded amused rather than insulted by AJ's observation. "I know. I always thought we'd either end up unhappily married to each other or going head-to-head in a boardroom in some bloodthirsty takeover bid. Then I met Mark. Two children later, I'm wondering why I ever thought taking over from Daddy was so important, although I'm not ruling it out completely, since Mark's a senior vice-president now."

AJ laughed. "Brainwashed by babies?"

"Laugh all you like. There's just something about watching them discover the world without prejudice. I don't think either one of us were allowed that growing up."

"I can't argue with you there."

"So this one. What's the story? Been together long?" Victoria's tone had dropped into low and confiding and Kyle could see her moving a little closer to AJ.

"Not really. It's sort of…complicated. We're still working some things out." AJ moved away from Victoria, out of sight of the window. "I don't mean to be rude, but I need to do a little work online…."

Victoria was still glancing out the window every few seconds, but she paused long enough to point off to the side. "No problem. You can use the desk in the second bedroom there. It's where you'll be sleeping anyway. You should have Kyle bring in your bags."

"Thanks. About that. This was all sort of spur of the moment."

"Really." Victoria sounded intrigued, but not enough to pry because she simply said, "Then I suppose after Kyle's brought them back inside, I'll just have a look at Mark's things and see what might fit you both."

~/~

Having finally lost his two little worshippers to naptime, Kyle wandered into the bedroom to see what AJ was working on. He'd only stopped working on his laptop long enough for a hastily eaten snack, before excusing himself and leaving Kyle in the role of walking, talking toy, much to Victoria's amusement. She had taken advantage of the children's fascination with Kyle to curl up on the sofa with a book and a cup of tea, while Kyle was taught the 'proper way to play Go Fish.' All the while Kyle was playing the games, an inner clock was ticking, each minute that passed adding to the feeling that he was making a mistake staying in one place for too long.

Closing the door behind him, Kyle walked over to the desk to look over AJ's shoulder. Typing something that looked as if it would require a decoder ring to read, AJ didn't acknowledge him until Kyle said, "I think I should probably leave tonight."

After saving the document, AJ twisted around in the chair to look up at Kyle, frowning. "Want to explain that?"

Kyle backed up to the bed and sat down, fatigue from too many days and nights of running suddenly sapping his inhuman strength. He kicked his shoes off before looking up at AJ's troubled face to explain haltingly, "I…I don't really know what else I can do. Staying here feels…wrong. Maybe it was a bad idea for us to stick together." Kyle dropped his gaze to the faded carpet and he shook his head, his voice lowering to a whisper. "I don't think I want to know who I am anymore. I really don't want to be that man, whoever he was."

AJ stood and walked over to stand in front of Kyle. His voice was low and even as he asked, "And you think running away alone will solve the problem?"

"You said it yourself. The only reason they're after you is because of me." Refusing to raise his eyes, not wanting to see the rejection in AJ's face, Kyle shrugged. "I've got the money. It should be enough to start over somewhere, even if I leave you half. Maybe if I lead them away you can…."

"I already apologized for losing it last night." AJ squatted in front of Kyle and reached out a hand to tip Kyle's chin up, forcing him to look at AJ as he said, "Look, I know it's been taking time, because I have to be careful they don't trace us here, but I've sent out feelers to some people I know. I've also contacted a friend of mine. He's…. AJ stopped, pressing his lips together for a moment before continuing. "Bruce has a lot of resources I don't have right now. He'll help get us back to the States, where we can get to the bottom of this. Together."

Overwhelmed by AJ's acceptance despite what they'd discovered about his past, Kyle leaned forward to rest his forehead against AJ's and whispered brokenly, "God. I…I'm so…sorry I didn't just walk away from you back in Zurich. I never meant…."

"Stop." AJ's hands cupped Kyle's face and he tipped his head to brush a kiss across Kyle's lips. "I'm not. If I'm right, if you're part of my father's project, then it doesn't matter. Nobody deserves to be put through that, to be twisted into…." AJ urged Kyle to shift back on the bed, and then crawled up to lay next to him, propped up on an elbow so he could look down in Kyle's eyes. "I had a pretty good idea what was going on before. I should have tried to stop it then, instead of running."

"In that case, I wish I could remember more, to help you. I'm feeling pretty damn useless right now." Kyle closed his eyes as AJ stroked his hair with soothing fingers. "I don't know whether to run laps around the house or put a pillow over my head and pretend I can rest.

"Tired of babysitting already?" AJ chuckled, the warm sound triggering the possibility of another activity in Kyle's mind, one that AJ obviously shared since he then suggested, "I can take a break while I'm waiting for some answers."

Kyle opened his eyes and smiled up at AJ. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." AJ shifted enough to cover Kyle's body with his, two thumps signaling the loss of his shoes as he settled between Kyle's thighs with a soft groan that Kyle echoed. AJ's weight holding him in place was exactly what Kyle needed. AJ lowered his head and licked along the curve of Kyle's lower lip, then nibbled it before pulling back far enough to murmur, "Definitely."

Kyle decided that he liked the way AJ thought.

 

***

Chapter Fourteen

***

Although his dreams had been less than peaceful, it was the absence of warmth and sound that woke AJ. Faint starlight revealed AJ's missing heat source standing at the window, too far away for AJ to hear the soft shirr of Kyle's breathing. Rather than disturb Kyle's reverie, AJ merely watched him in mild curiosity, feeling more than a little envy at the naked man's ability to ignore the chill of the room. Closing the door for privacy had cut off the heat from the main portion of the old house, and AJ regretted not accepting the suggestion of lighting a fire in the room's seldom-used and pristine fireplace.

When AJ shivered and tugged the blankets a little higher, Kyle turned to check the noise, and then abandoned the window for the bed. He silently slid between the sheets and gathered AJ close, tucking AJ's head under his chin to help warm him. Kyle's body betrayed not even a hint of the cold by the window, and other portions of AJ's body soon took notice of all the wonderfully warm skin pressed against him. With a murmur of pleasure, AJ nudged a leg between Kyle's to bring them even closer, slotting together like pieces of a puzzle.

Goosebumps successfully banished, sleep was no longer AJ's goal. The afternoon's session had started out slow and ended up fast and dirty, both of them too eager for finesse, their clothing barely shoved out of the way in time to save it from embarrassing stains. Childish voices rising on the other side of the locked door had then intruded before either man had managed more than a few minutes of rest. As a result, after a late supper, Kyle had fallen asleep on the bed while AJ had still been working on his laptop. Now that they were both awake, AJ debated on whether to share the arrangements he'd made. With dawn only a few hours away, AJ decided it was the perfect opportunity to enjoy what little time they had left before grim reality intruded once more.

Sliding lower, AJ enjoyed the scrub of Kyle's hair against his own smooth skin, the sensation surprisingly soft rather than the expected rough. He dragged his mouth across Kyle's chest to suck in a nipple that was already anticipating the attention, and smiled as he heard Kyle's low moan when AJ captured the raised nub between his teeth. Kyle's hands stroked down AJ's back, always gentle, and then lifted AJ to meet Kyle's lips in a demanding kiss. The movement disturbed the blankets, and a cold draft sent a shiver down AJ's back. He laughed into Kyle's mouth and squirmed free, disappearing beneath the covers to continue his blind exploration.

It was quickly apparent Kyle had a different plan when AJ found himself flipped to his back and then blanketed by a large and very warm body. "Hey, I was going to…." AJ's annoyed whisper faded against Kyle's lips and he relaxed to enjoy the heated pressure that teased him into needing more.

AJ was breathless with want, his body writhing against restraint, when Kyle dragged his mouth free long enough to whisper, "I know. Not safe…for you." Before AJ could protest that he didn't get sick and he was willing to take the chance, Kyle was gone, his mouth burning a hot, wet path down AJ's body.

Kyle's tongue tickled a wayward path, followed by a scrape of beard that enhanced the soothing pleasure of Kyle's lips, although AJ twisted in mock protest and muttered, "Need to…borrow Mark's razor…." A chuckle was Kyle's answer, along with a few extra scrubs of his cheek in the crease of AJ's hip, before he shifted to swallow AJ without even a kiss of warning. AJ bit off a deep groan, fearing that too much noise might waken Victoria and the children. Sinking one hand into Kyle's hair, AJ bit down on the other, the tender flesh between thumb and forefinger bearing the brunt of AJ's effort to remain quiet while the exquisite torture of Kyle's mouth goaded him ever closer to a shout.

Any pride AJ might have taken in his stamina was soon relegated to the past. When Kyle gently palmed AJ's balls and pressed up with a knuckle - at the same time his lips touched AJ's smooth mound and he swallowed - it was over. Light flashed behind AJ's closed eyelids and he forgot to breathe for long moments as he curled upward, shuddering uncontrollably until he finally collapsed back against the pillows, drained.

Every muscle limp from release, AJ could only smile as he felt Kyle settle against him, tucking his face into AJ's shoulder as he thrust along the same crease he'd mockingly abused earlier. The drag against the beard-abraded skin didn't continue more than a few strokes before a slick warmth eased Kyle's path, and then he muffled a moan against AJ's neck and throbbed to a trembling halt.

Feeling as if he'd melted into the bed, AJ murmured a mild objection when Kyle shifted to the side but, a few moments later, a new position mollified him. Sticky mess cleared away by a corner of the sheet, his back to Kyle's chest, AJ drifted to sleep, warm inside Kyle's arms and willing to let the rest of the world slide away for a few more hours.

~/~

Giggles and the thump of small feet in the hallway woke AJ, a smile curving his lips as he heard Victoria laughing and then shushing the children so their new friends could sleep a little longer. He raised his head from Kyle's chest to check how close he was to rousing and was caught by how young and innocent Kyle looked minus the strain that lurked around and behind his eyes. The two-day scruff and tousled hair enhanced his dark looks rather than detracting from them, the ink-black lashes that fluttered open a perfect frame for eyes whose color defied description. Kyle blinked sleepily and smiled back at AJ, his voice gravelly as he greeted AJ with a simple, "Morning."

Kyle's head lifted and his arms tightened around AJ as he stretched and then settled against AJ. Risking the hazard of morning breath, AJ leaned forward to brush a kiss across Kyle's lips before replying, "Good morning." He reluctantly pulled away from Kyle's embrace to sit on the edge of the bed. "We should get cleaned up and see about breakfast. There are some decisions we need to make."

Rolling to his side, Kyle propped his head up with a crooked elbow. "Decisions?"

AJ determinedly ignored the expanse of golden skin that revealed and stood, grabbing the sweatpants and t-shirt he'd borrowed from Mark and slipping them on as he explained, "I have a couple of options for our next destination, as well as some ideas on how to handle your…identity crisis." AJ smiled to soften his words and was pleased to see Kyle accept the information with his own smile.

"I'll let you shower first, while I hunt up a razor." Kyle scrubbed his dark scruff with a grin. "After all, wouldn't want to endanger your tender skin any more than _necessary_." AJ shivered at the warm intimacy of Kyle's voice and wisely exited the room before he gave into temptation.

~/~

"I really was hoping you'd stay." Victoria set her tea mug on the table and frowned at AJ. "Mark was so looking forward to seeing you again."

AJ looked up with a smile as a freshly shaved Kyle walked into the room, and then frowned when Victoria's complaint penetrated his contentment. "Wait. You talked to Mark?"

Victoria nodded, appearing a little puzzled by AJ's gruff tone. "Yesterday, while you were resting. I mentioned you'd stopped by, and he said it looked as if he'd be able to make it down a little earlier than he'd expected, since the Cadmus Labs proposal went so well." She thought for a moment. "Oh, and Dominic was in the office with him when I called and he sent along his best. He mentioned something about a few problems with a new project you're involved in?"

AJ froze for a moment before choking out, "Mark was with Dominic…Senatori?" Kyle crossed the room to stand behind AJ's chair, his large hands gently settling on AJ's shoulders. AJ appreciated the gesture, especially after hearing that his father's right-hand man knew where AJ was. He was well aware that Dominic had been responsible for more than one of his setbacks, and it didn't surprise AJ that Dominic was involved in the latest.

"Yes." Victoria looked up at Kyle and gestured toward an empty chair. "He's head of LuthorCorp's overseas acquisitions. I thought you knew that." She smiled at Kyle and asked, "Would you like me to make you an omelet for breakfast? AJ was only interested in toast and coffee, as usual."

Before Kyle could answer, the children ran inside, the door slamming behind them as the little girl shouted, "Mummy, Mummy, Simon won't come! He jumped the wall and ran across the field!"

Already on edge with the knowledge that he'd made a mistake not telling Victoria to keep their presence a secret, AJ asked worriedly, "Does that happen a lot?" He felt Kyle's fingers tighten on his shoulders and understood why.

Victoria rose from her chair with a sigh. "No, he's more likely to just sit and bark. I'll just get dressed and fetch him back."

Kyle intercepted her with an abrupt, "This place has a cellar, right?"

Victoria tilted her head, her smile tentative as she pointed toward a door down the hall, "Yes, a wine cellar. Why?"

Rising from his chair, AJ watched as Kyle stared intently at one of the walls for a moment before shaking his head. Returning his attention to Victoria, Kyle's voice was low and urgent. "You and the children need to go down into the cellar right now. AJ, you need to stay with them, take care of them."

Suddenly realizing that Kyle had detected something with his more-than-human senses, AJ surged into motion, sweeping both of the children into his arms and heading for the cellar door. "Come on, Victoria, do as he says. Hurry!"

"Lex, what's going on?" Although Victoria's voice quavered on the edge of panic, she followed AJ and her children down the hall without a struggle. "What kind of trouble have you gotten into now?"

"It's not him, Victoria. It's me." Kyle held the door open as AJ led the way down the steep wooden stairs. At the bottom, AJ set the children down and pointed them and Victoria to the rear of the room. Kyle had disappeared for a few moments but, before AJ could reach the top of the stairs again, Kyle returned with a rifle and a box of shells. He handed them down to AJ with a brusque, "I noticed this tucked away on top of the armoire yesterday. You can use this, right?"

AJ accepted the weapon with a quiet, "Yes." He tucked the shells into a pocket, and then reached up to Kyle. "Kyle, I…."

Kyle shook his head and interrupted with, "Bolt this door and don't let anyone in, not even me, unless I tell you I'm…John Michael Kane. Okay?" He bent forward and AJ let Kyle pull him in for a hard, fast kiss before Kyle backed away. The last thing AJ heard Kyle say before the door closed was a fervent promise. "Everything's going to be okay. I won't let anything happen to any of you."

 

***

Chapter Fifteen

***

 

The thud of the bolt slamming home jolted Kyle into action. With a final glancing slide of his hand across the door, he turned and ran into the room they'd slept in. Situated on the side of the cottage opposite the open fields, the room's window opened wide enough to allow Kyle to slip outside without alerting the sniper he'd spotted earlier.

It had been a shock to discover his latest enhancement, but he hadn't hesitated to use it. All he'd meant to do was to listen for the children's pet. Having the intervening walls dissolve before his eyes to allow him to _see_, when he'd only been trying to hear, had proven a lifesaving revelation. A few seconds after he'd identified a silent, unmoving lump of golden fur halfway across the field, a glint at the distant tree line had drawn Kyle's attention. When he'd narrowed his focus enough to identify a sniper scope, he'd immediately known what needed to happen in order to keep the others safe. Thankfully, AJ and Victoria hadn't slowed him down with questions or objections, sparing him the need to explain what had happened to the children's pet.

Pausing only long enough to gather a handful of jagged stones from the gravel drive, Kyle circled the cottage, keeping the outbuildings between him and the fields until he was able to enter the surrounding woods. After a quick check to confirm the sniper hadn't moved, Kyle circled the field at a staggered run, bent low and keeping to the trees to present as small a target as possible, while avoiding dried leaves and branches that might give his position away. The closer he came to the sniper's location, the more Kyle hoped that if the assassin somehow possessed the same physical advantages, they were as suppressed as Kyle's had been.

Crouching behind a slight rise a dozen yards or so behind the sniper's position, Kyle considered his options. Originally, he'd planned on using the stones as silent high-velocity projectiles, substituting for the gun he'd handed off to AJ. With his quarry so close and still unaware, Kyle decided to chance a capture for information instead of simply eliminating the danger. Scanning the field ahead, he nodded in satisfaction when he located a possible diversion. After discarding the stones, he selected a fist-sized rock from a nearby pile and tossed it about halfway across the field, flushing a covey of birds that took to the air in a whirr of wings. With the sniper focused on the movement, Kyle was able to race unseen across the space separating them to land on the sniper's back, successfully knocking him to the ground.

Unfortunately, Kyle's triumph was short-lived. A wave of dizziness washed over Kyle as he grappled for the weapon, and the sniper was able to squirm free, dragging the rifle with him. Before he could raise it to fire, Kyle staggered to his feet and kicked out, sending the rifle flying out into the deep grass of the field. With a flash of steel, the sniper snarled and leapt for Kyle's throat, knocking him back a few feet with more-than-human strength and speed, reminding Kyle of the assassin in Paris. Each foot of distance from the rifle restored more of Kyle's own enhanced strength, so he allowed the sniper to drive him backwards to maximize the advantage.

While he automatically deflected a flurry of kicks along with a vicious-looking knife, Kyle deliberately held back on his own strikes in order to preserve the other man for questioning. A slippery patch of leaves spoiled that plan, sending Kyle skidding off-balance just as he'd attempted to grab the arm holding the knife, throw the sniper over his back to the ground, and then disarm him. Twisting to avoid a fall, Kyle completed the maneuver, but he'd accelerated more than he'd anticipated, sending the man flying over Kyle's shoulder and into a tree trunk with a sickening crack and thud.

When Kyle turned, it was instantly apparent that the sniper's physical enhancements hadn't been as extensive as Kyle's. The other man wasn't going anywhere. His back curled impossibly around the tree, legs limp and useless, one arm was outstretched and scraping across the ground as he moaned. Dropping to one knee next to him, Kyle reached out and then stopped, unwilling to inadvertently add to the injuries. A quick scan beneath the man's skin confirmed shattered vertebrae and severed spine mid-back, as well as several ribs that had snapped free to penetrate lungs and liver, and Kyle somehow recognized he was running out of time.

Swallowing a pang of guilt at another death by his hands, Kyle tapped the man's cheek to rouse him from his daze to ask, "Who else is out here?" Only one eye visible as he stared along the ground, the man didn't answer until Kyle slapped his face, leaned in closer, and then growled, "Who else is out here? Answer me!"

"Alone. Always work alone." A cough brought a trickle of blood to the man's lips and he gasped as he answered, "Assigned…you and Luthor…witnesses…after Arkin failed…Paris."

Although Kyle suspected Victoria's call had led their pursuers to the cottage, he needed to know that it wasn't something more. "Is there some sort of tracking device in me?"

"They track us…someone else can." Another coughing spasm left blood spattered across the ground, then the man's face twisted in puzzlement as he turned to look up at Kyle. "You know…all this…Kent."

Kyle looked closely at the man. Light-brown close-cropped hair, square jaw, brown eyes, and a scar that slashed through the right brow; none of it looked familiar. Frowning in frustration, Kyle rubbed the memory of pain from his temple and said, "I don't remember anything."

"Headaches?" The man sighed and his eyes drifted closed as he mumbled, "Hate those."

Kyle pulled back, too sick at heart to apply more pain to force answers from the dying man. "Yeah, I did. They've stopped."

There was a moment's pause before the other said, "Must be…why Fellstone…ordered…."

"Fellstone?" Kyle jumped on the morsel of information like a starving man. "Tell me who Fellstone is! Does he have something to do with Willamette?"

"Not…who." A crimson bubble balanced on bloodstained lips, then broke on a wheeze. "What."

"Is this Fellstone in Paris?" Kyle waited for a few moments then shook the man's shoulder. "I need to know if Fellstone is in Paris!"

The only answer was a flat, "Mission incomplete, asset compromised." With a shudder, every muscle in man's body relaxed, a single soft word floating out on his final breath. "Jody…."

~/~

AJ slammed shut the trunk of the stolen sedan, apparently startling Victoria, who had been securing the children in the back seat. She frowned across the roof at him after she straightened up and closed the car door more sedately. AJ shrugged at her, and then turned to Kyle with a frown of his own. "Are you sure about this? I still say we could all pile into Victoria's Rover and go together."

Kyle fought the temptation to give in, knowing it would be the wrong decision. Upon his return to the cottage, Kyle had pulled AJ aside to inform him what he'd found across the field and what needed to happen next. He'd helped pack the stolen car and left the explanations as to why to AJ, limiting himself to stumbling apologies to Victoria for placing her and her children in danger.

Saying goodbye to AJ was proving even more difficult.

"I can't risk anymore innocent people getting hurt because of who I am. That's why I'm going to use the Rover to get back to Paris and find this Fellstone - whatever it is - and bring it down." Kyle handed AJ the red bag containing the money from the bank, minus thirty thousand Kyle had kept for himself. "Here. Use this to get all of you someplace safe. Take the first flight out of Lyon, or rent a car but, most importantly, keep moving. Wherever you decide to stop, make sure you pick a place neither of you have been before. I wish I knew for how long, but until I succeed, I'm assuming they'll be looking to eliminate any witnesses, so it could be a while. I just hope that mysterious friend of yours can be trusted."

Victoria rolled down the car window and called out, "Lex, we need to be going!" She turned to the back seat where Kyle could hear children's protests about leaving their dog behind, her voice soothing despite an edge of panic. "I'm sorry, but…Simon is…."

Kyle hurried over to the car and opened the driver's door to lean inside. "Don't worry, you two. I'll take care of Simon for you." He summoned a smile for the children, and then Victoria. "You just enjoy your trip."

Straightening again, he shifted so that AJ could enter the car, but AJ had other plans. Tossing the bag in the car, he reached out and dragged Kyle into a hug, then cupped Kyle's face in his hands for a kiss. It was hard and desperate, taste and touch saying everything they couldn't put into words. Reluctantly pulling back, Kyle slid his hand down AJ's arm to his hand and squeezed. "Get in the car, AJ. You've got to get going. When AJ still hesitated, Kyle whispered, "Please."

AJ looked up at Kyle for a few moments, and then nodded. "Okay. You have the number I gave you?" When Kyle smiled and rolled his eyes, AJ smiled back, shaking his head as he laughed. "Yes, I know. You remember _everything_ since you woke up on that boat. Humor me. You'll need to ask for Alfred Pennyworth and leave a message for Master Alexander. He'll make certain it gets to either me or Bruce."

When AJ reached out again, Kyle backed away. He watched as AJ got behind the wheel of the car and used his new skill to start the car, and then he held up his hand as the car crunched down the drive, waving until he was certain that no one could see him. Once the car was out of sight, he headed for a small shed by the side of the cottage, pulled out a spade, and then strode off across the field to keep a promise as well as clean up his mess.

~/~

Kyle emptied the olive-green pack that the sniper had been carrying onto the table and sorted through its relatively safe contents. He'd already buried the sniper's rifle and a box of shells, immediately after emptying his stomach into the hole that he'd dug, barely managing to replace the dirt between bouts of pain and nausea. A handgun, one not accompanied by a wave of weakness, was the first item set aside for possible use in the future. Kyle disregarded some wires, earphones and a map, but the cell phone was a different story. Flipping it open, Kyle checked the list of previous calls, then hit redial on the most recent.

A female answered on the second ring. "Code, please."

Kyle had already settled on a plan and which answers he needed in the limited time available. "Is this Fellstone?"

"I'm sorry, sir. You have …."

"I don't think so. Try Dominic Senatori." Kyle thought for a moment. "Or…Luthor."

There was a click and a new voice, male, snapped, "Keenan? What's going on?"

Kyle trusted his instincts and kept his voice honed sharp. "If Keenan is the guy with a scar through his eyebrow, he's dead."

There was a sharp intake of breath, then, "Who…Kent?"

Kyle could hear voices on the other end; the caller's name, whispers about tracing the call and the need to keep him talking. "I'll be done talking before you can complete the trace, Senatori."

"It appears we may have made a too-hasty decision, Kent. I'm certain we can work things out, but you'll need to come in."

"You really think I'm that stupid?" Kyle methodically dumped everything back into the bag, keeping the phone tucked against his ear. "Why would I want to do that?"

"I don't think you have a choice, if you want to live, Kent." The sneer in the other's voice was easily discernible over the line. "Why don't you talk it over with your new _friend_? Ask Lex Luthor how far he thinks Dominic Senatori will go to correct a _mistake_."

Kyle's tone was flat as he replied, "I don't think he gives a damn, Senatori. He's dead."

There was a hitch in Senatori's breath before he tried again. "I see. You…."

Knowing that his time was up, Kyle made his demands clear. "Enough! You want me then it'll happen in Paris. Pont Neuf, today, 6:30 PM. You come alone. Walk to the middle of that bridge, take off your jacket, and face east. I'll redial this number when I'm sure you're alone."

"Are you insane? I'm not…."

Flipping the phone shut, Kyle picked up the bag, and headed out the door to the Rover. Somehow, he knew that despite his protests, Senatori would be on that bridge in nine hours.

Kyle needed to get there first.

 

***

Chapter Sixteen

***

 

"So where's this safe house of yours located? Nowhere near Metropolis, I hope."

"Where do you think it is, Lex?" The dark-haired man sitting in the pilot's seat of the world's fastest private jet glanced sideways with a frown. "You'll all be staying at Wayne Manor, of course."

'AJ' had been locked away hours earlier when he'd left Kyle behind, but Lex still flinched at his reacquired name and the edge of irritation in his friend's voice. There was an echo in his own when he attempted to refuse. "Damn it, Bruce. You can't. I didn't mean to expose you and Alfred to…."

"Too late. It's done." Bruce shrugged as he checked the glittering array of instruments in front of him. "Reality is that if this shadow organization can manage to break through my security at the manor, then none of us is safe. Anywhere." Obviously satisfied that they were exactly where they were supposed to be in the airspace above the Atlantic Ocean, Bruce turned to Lex with a slight smile. "You could just thank me for flying over four thousand miles to pick you up personally."

Lex shook his head and smiled back. "I would, but I suspect you were looking for an excuse to try out some new mods on this baby. I happen to know the Cessna Citation X rates out at 50,000 feet and 600 mph, but you've got us cruising at an easy 750. Has Lucius been tinkering again?"

"Isn't he always?" Bruce laughed. "You know I'm all about owning the best toys."

"Toys. Right." Leaning his head back on the seat, Lex closed his eyes and sighed in relief as his muscles slowly began to unclench. "Go sell that to someone who mistakenly believes you're just a empty-headed playboy, Wayne."

The tension that had filled the hours since he'd left Kyle behind still hummed through Lex's nerves, but knowing that Bruce had his back made it possible for Lex to let go enough to rest, at least a little. No longer having to deal with two bored, unhappy children, as well as their increasingly furious mother was a huge relief. He was glad he'd only had to wait two hours and seventeen minutes at Lyon-Saint Exupéry Airport for Bruce to arrive. Longer might have forced Lex into promising Victoria more than his financial first-born. The cockpit door was a welcome barrier between him and Victoria, her children, and the tall blonde co-pilot that Bruce had introduced as Ms. Graves.

"I'm afraid I have some bad news for you." Bruce's voice was low and held a note of regret that brought Lex upright in his seat. "Alfred notified me, shortly after I'd taken off, that Lucas Dunleavy was found shot to death in Las Vegas. The coroner's preliminary findings indicated it happened approximately three days ago. Although I don't have the full details yet, I doubt it's a coincidence, considering what's been happening with you and this Kent character."

Lex closed his eyes, dropped his chin to his chest, and pinched the bridge of nose to help hold back an unexpected wave of emotion. He'd never been close to his half-brother, had barely exchanged a dozen words with him from one year to the next, but Lucas had been the only family Lex had left, except for his father. That meant he had no one, no one except a few friends, who'd thankfully proven to be closer than any kin he'd ever had.

Taking a deep breath, Lex blew it out slowly then said quietly, "You're right, it all has to be related somehow." Raising his head, Lex opened his eyes to see his friend watching him, waiting. Focusing all his hate and fear into resolve, Lex made a solemn promise to himself that he would not falter, as he admitted aloud, "I can't pretend anymore that it's just me and my father's latest scheme to bring me down. I can even put a name to all this now. Fellstone."

"Fellstone?" There was a hint of surprise in Bruce's voice, quickly overridden by the satisfaction of solving a puzzle. "So, it's just as I suspected. This _is_ all related."

"Bruce?"

"There's a reason I have a co-pilot along this time, Lex. I decided it would be the easiest way to keep her out of trouble while I was traveling." Bruce swept a glance across the instruments in front of him, engaged the autopilot, and then turned back to Lex. "I ran across her while she was _negotiating_ with certain undesirable elements I've been tracking in Gotham. The _discussion_ got out of hand after I arrived, and she ended up being surprisingly…helpful cleaning up the mess. Afterward, she explained why she'd been so interested in acquiring some very specialized equipment not available through legal channels. "

Tapping a finger against his chin, Bruce paused for a moment, and then forced a grim smile. "I can certainly sympathize with that kind of need in special circumstances such as hers. It seems that she and her partner, Hope Taya, were forcibly recruited into a highly classified project and, when they attempted to escape with some others, only Mercy made it out. Since then, she's been working on a plan to free Hope, assuming she's still alive. I have to admit that she's good, but it's not going to be easy to get in there. A frontal assault is out. From what she's told me, they'd sacrifice the prisoners to eliminate potential witnesses."

Recalling the string of bodies left behind in Europe, Lex nodded. "I have to agree. I'm also assuming that this mysterious project's name happens to be Fellstone."

"Exactly. It's housed in a decommissioned military facility; Fort Avelson, located about a hundred miles north of Metropolis. Since Wayne Industries holds more than one military contract, Lucius used his contacts and called in some favors. He found out that the 'Honorable Senator Burke from the great state of Kansas' sponsored the project for approval by the Armed Forces Committee, although I doubt it was presented as a means for assassination." Bruce frowned. "There's something else you need to know about it, Lex."

Weariness swept over Lex and he leaned his head back and closed his eyes before murmuring, "Let me guess. It's a LuthorCorp project, based on the studies done at Willamette."

The confirmation was a simple, "Yes."

Although Lex didn't open his eyes, it didn't mean he was hiding from his responsibilities. "I've been accumulating evidence against my father, piece by piece, for years. Combined with Lucius' information, there should finally be enough to use as a credible threat."

"Your father and his corporation are like a hydra, Lex. Cut off one head and two more grow," Bruce warned. "I have some ideas about that, including using the media as a failsafe, but I have to warn you that you could lose everything taking him down. Odds are, LutherCorp wouldn't survive full disclosure."

"I know. Why do you think I haven't moved on him before this?" Lex could hear the despair in his voice but, even without looking, he knew his friend wouldn't judge him for it. "The problem is that after meeting Kyle, seeing what my father's done and is continuing to do, I can't wait any longer. I don't care about the damn money, I never have. If he refuses to shut down voluntarily and forces my hand, then I'll be choosing between thousands of people losing their jobs and countless others losing their lives." Lex sighed in resignation. "I didn't start this mess, Bruce, but I swear that I'm going to end it."

A warm hand squeezed Lex's shoulder and a graveled voice promised, "_We_ will." Knowing he was safe, suffering an exhaustion that was more than physical, Lex allowed himself to drift, trying not to worry about Kyle and to believe he would see him again.

 

***

Chapter Seventeen

***

 

Kyle might have regretted burying the sniper scope along with Keenan's rifle, if not for his enhanced senses. Knowing he had to keep his distance, he'd practiced focusing his hearing and sight on the train from Lyon and felt confident he could monitor Senatori without being detected. Parked on a cross street in his latest stolen car, Kyle could see the entire bridge and its entrances on either side of the river, although it was sometimes through a building or sidewalk stall. His hearing was a little trickier, and he'd been forced to reduce his range until Senatori came into sight because the flood of sound was too confusing.

Even with night quickly approaching, the panel truck with the flat tire was an easy setup to spot, as was the surveillance wire that an average-sized businessman adjusted as he exited a black luxury sedan to walk onto the bridge. Relieved that he'd calculated the right side of the river to wait on, Kyle started his car and left it running as he extended his hearing. The quiet murmurs made by the man as he walked were easy to pick up after Kyle had pinpointed him and, by all the indications in the short bursts of communication, Senatori had taken the bait.

When Senatori reached the middle of the bridge, faced east, and took off his jacket as directed, despite the threat of snow that chilled the evening air, Kyle placed a call. He watched in mild amusement as Senatori fumbled his cell phone out of his pocket to bark impatiently, "Kent?'

Waiting a few beats, Kyle scanned the surrounding buildings and rooftops, and then replied in an even tone, "I told you to come alone, Senatori. I guess keeping that sniper off the roof of La Samaritaine was too difficult for you to manage." Cutting the connection, Kyle smiled in satisfaction at Senatori's furious shouts into the dead phone and live wire.

Angrily shrugging his jacket on, Senatori headed back to the waiting sedan, stabbing at the buttons on his phone. With his quarry identified, Kyle was able to pick up Senatori's terse conversation, even as he pulled out into traffic to follow a discreet three cars behind. "Tina? You're moving. How long will it take?"

The woman's voice on the other end of the line was calm and professional. "I'm assuming that you need everything cleared and wiped. I can have that done in two to three hours, depending on whether I have help. I'll order the truck brought around and begin immediately."

Senatori wasted no time confirming his order, just snapped, "Go!" and closed his phone. Relying on the same suppressed memories that had guided him on the earlier high-speed chase, Kyle was easily able to keep monitoring Senatori while maneuvering through the maze of city streets, but heard nothing more until the sedan pulled up in front of a nondescript three-story brownstone located a few blocks west of Gare du Nord. As Senatori exited the vehicle, he called out orders to the man who met him on the sidewalk. "I want two of your men on front and back and one on the door. Call me when the truck gets here."

Depending on his fake glasses and knit hat for camouflage, Kyle drove past and around the next corner to park. After peering through the surrounding structures to identify any watchers or alarms, he exited the car into the closest shadow, his dark clothes blending in, and then headed for a nearby fire escape. After an easy leap to the first landing, Kyle crept upward to the roof and then across to the building next to his target while monitoring Senatori's movements, as well as the guards' patrols, through the intervening walls. With so few precautions in place, Kyle had to assume Senatori believed that Kyle's implants were still restricting his more-than-human abilities.

Kyle felt no qualms in taking advantage of their carelessness. Waiting until Senatori and a young woman, who Kyle presumed was Tina, were occupied shredding papers and transferring data, Kyle jumped across to their building and entered through the roof's fire door after disconnecting the alarm. Crouched at the top of the stairwell, Kyle listened and watched, monitoring everyone's movements, especially those in the apartment that had been converted into an office. Tina worked steadily on the cleanup without a word, while Senatori paced impatiently between the windows overlooking the street and the racks of electronic equipment. After checking the guards' positions, Kyle crept down the stairs and silently slipped inside, locking the door behind him.

Taking advantage of his speed, Kyle had Senatori pressed face-first against a wall in just a few seconds, the silenced gun he found under Senatori's jacket tossed into the farthest corner of the room before the too-familiar nausea and weakness could affect Kyle. Pressing his own gun to Senatori's head, Kyle ordered Tina away from the desk that held another gun and into a different corner. "Go stand over there where I can see you. Don't try anything and you won't get hurt."

Shaking Senatori once by the back of his neck, Kyle flipped him around so he could look into the man's eyes when he asked his questions. "Tell me about Fellstone."

"What are you talking about?" Senatori sneered. "You've completely lost it, haven't you?" He pushed away from the wall and straightened his jacket, brushing himself off, as he arrogantly looked Kyle over from head to toe. "I suggest you start rethinking your strategy, Kent, because I was under the impression we work for the same people."

Kyle made a quick scan of the building and Tina before he asked, "If that's true, then why are you trying to kill me?"

"I don't believe this." Senatori shook his head slowly. "You honestly don't have a clue, do you?"

"Answer me!" Impatient at the man's stalling tactics, Kyle shoved him back against the wall again, exerting all his control to avoid damaging Senatori before he had what he needed. "What is Fellstone? Who and what am I?"

Senatori ran a hand back through his thinning hair and laughed. "Right now, you appear to be a malfunctioning thirty million dollar investment." The man's utter disdain of Kyle's threats made him wonder what he might have missed, and Kyle scanned the building again for a trap. Senatori took advantage of Kyle's hesitation and shifted to a coldly professional voice to ask, "Why don't you tell me what happened in Marseilles?"

Kyle sent a glare in Tina's direction when she shifted in her corner then turned back to Senatori to protest, "What happened in Marseilles? Someone…_you_…sent me to kill Wombosi!"

"I supposedly ordered you to kill Wombosi?" Senatori's mocking tone sent a chill down Kyle's spine. "Our assets aren't directed to simply _kill_ people. I could have sent Tina to do something as simple as that." Senatori flipped a casual hand toward Tina, who didn't look at all happy to have Kyle's attention switched to her, even for just a few moments. "Mr. Wombosi was supposed to be found dead three weeks ago with all evidence pointing to murder by a member of his own staff. You failed your assignment, and I had to send someone else to clean up the mess. Now I'm giving you an opportunity to explain what went wrong."

"I don't remember what happened in Marseilles." Kyle gritted out, baffled by how quickly he'd been forced into a defensive position when he was the one holding the weapon.

"I'm afraid that answer won't be acceptable," Senatori snapped back. "Try again."

Kyle backed up a step, struggling to understand why he felt constrained to answer. "I…."

"You _were_ considered a valuable asset because of your training and because _you don't exist_. You're nothing but a series of facades, Kent, identities that you build to order. What happened in Marseilles was all up to you. John Michael Kane only existed long enough for your alibi. You put together a meeting with Wombosi, found the security company, and then broke into their office." Senatori is in Kyle's face and he is shaking his head in denial. "You picked the yacht as the strike point.

Kyle suddenly flashed on a dark narrow hallway, an automatic heavy in his hand, sweating under wet suit that constrained his movements. He reeled backward under the overload of sense memories; the scent of salt air, the rock and sway under his feet, the jarring sound of children's laughter cut short by Senatori's accusation. "You hid out on that boat for five days to meet your objective."

A new scene overlaid the first, a man, Wombosi, slouched in a recliner in a darkened room watching a child play with toy cars. Kyle focused on the little boy who is smiling and chattering in some childish dialect, couldn't look away from the soft brown skin and wide dark eyes that reminded Kyle of another…. Kyle's gun, heavy, pressed to the top of Wombosi's head and the boy, so like that forgotten child, held up his toy….

Kyle staggered, as if absorbing invisible blows, his vision and balance trapped in the past. Senatori's voice broke through, hard and cruel. "You were in, but you choked."

In the lightning slashes of Kyle's memory, Wombosi looked up slowly, his face inverted, shocked, his arms tightening around the baby girl sleeping in his arms. There were two other children sleeping on the sofa across the small room and Kyle backed away, trembling. Wombosi slipped the baby off his lap to the chair and stood in front of his children watching silently as Kyle lowered his gun and retreated. There were shouts then Kyle hung off the boat above the waves, gunshots, pain, and dark water.

"You claim that you don't remember anything, but I think you do. Now, tell me what went wrong!"

The cutting edge in Senatori's voice sliced through Kyle's haze, and he shook himself free of the tattered memories to snarl back, "No more! I'm not doing your dirty work anymore! I'm going to stop this!"

Senatori shrugged, his confidence puzzling since Kyle was the one holding a gun. "That's not an option."

It was one disdainful comment too many, and Kyle surged forward to pin Senatori against the wall, Kyle's hand at his throat. "That's where you're wrong." Despite every instinct that screamed he needed to leave, to use his buried skills to disappear, Kyle managed to grit out, "You're going to go back and tell them that their precious _asset_ has resigned and it's over. Do you understand?"

"Or what? You'll kill me?" Senatori choked out. "What chance do you think you have against everything we have in place?" His eyes flickered over Kyle's shoulder and then narrowed, which was all the warning Kyle needed.

Keeping Senatori pinned, Kyle turned sideways, his gun up and aimed in microseconds. Tina stood there with Senatori's gun extended, and then suddenly it was AJ standing there aiming the weapon, and Kyle froze.

"What are you waiting for? Shoot him!" Both Kyle and AJ jerked at Senatori's rasped command, but AJ was the only one who pulled a trigger. Feeling as though he were sinking in quicksand, Kyle twisted, hearing the suppressed spit from the silencer, knowing he was too late and anticipating the shock of hot metal searing through his flesh at any moment. Kyle's belated reaction shifted Senatori nearly a foot, which likely saved his life, the bullet meant for Senatori's heart carving through his left bicep into the wall instead.

"No!" Instinctively, Kyle threw himself over the man, blocking a second shot at the risk of his own life. When nothing happened, Kyle glanced back over his shoulder in time to watch AJ transform back into Tina, the gun lowered to point harmlessly at the floor. "You…I…AJ?" Kyle stammered in confusion, as Senatori struggled against him with garbled protests.

"You should get out of the way. He almost had you, took a hit of Levitas right before he was supposed to meet you on the bridge." Shaking her head, Tina said irritably, "You're an idiot. He'd kill you in an instant."

Confused by the turnaround, nauseated and dizzy from the bullet lodged in the wall next to him, Kyle insisted. "I'm not like him. Not anymore." Realizing he needed a clearer head, Kyle knocked Senatori against the wall hard enough to knock him out, and then dragged him backward a few feet before allowing him to slump to the floor.

"Keeping him alive is just going to make shutting Fellstone and the Ares project down even more difficult." Tina raised the gun again, aiming it at Senatori. Kyle readied himself to jump, but then she shrugged and walked away. "You should tie him up." Without waiting to see if Kyle obeyed, she dropped the gun inside a desk drawer and began typing commands into a laptop.

After scanning to make sure the guards hadn't heard anything and quickly binding Senatori with a cord that he yanked from the window blinds, Kyle approached Tina to ask, "Levitas? I don't understand. How did you do that? And…don't you work for him, uh, them?"

"Levitas is one of the many drugs they use, forces people to tell you the truth, keeps them off-balance. Me? You're not the only one who's _different_, Kent." Tina stopped typing only long enough to glare at him. "As far as working for them, I wasn't given much of a choice, just like you." Turning her attention back to the screen, she muttered, "I'm an idiot, too. I probably should have shot _you_ and waited for a better opportunity." Snapping the laptop closed, she unplugged its power cord, shoved both into a backpack, and handed it to Kyle. "I'm assuming you have a way out of here and can keep out of sight."

Kyle nodded. "Up and over. My car's to the right, around the block."

"Good, I'll meet you there. We need to be at Gare du Nord in thirty minutes. I have tickets waiting for us." She began flipping switches on various pieces of equipment and the smell of melted plastic and fried circuits filled the air. "There, that's done. You should get going."

Still trying to make sense of what was happening, Kyle blurted, "What about you?"

"I'll be going out the front door, of course." Before Kyle could say anything, she transformed again, into Senatori. With a pitch-perfect sneer, the fake Senatori flicked an invisible piece of lint from a cuff. "We'll talk on the way to Lyon-Saint Exupéry, since they're watching the Paris airports and transatlantic flights. After we're back in the States, I'm assuming you'll be keeping them busy enough that I'll be able to get to my mother and move her to somewhere safe." She frowned at her bound doppelganger and then bent over him to extract his cell phone from a pocket. Straightening up, she checked it before sliding it inside her jacket. "It would be much easier if he couldn't tell them I was an accomplice."

Kyle understood that risk, but he couldn't accept cold-blooded murder, not after his glimpses of the past. Slinging the backpack over his shoulder, he bent to pick up Senatori in a fireman's carry. "I'll take him with me and stash him in the empty apartment in the building next door. It should take them a while to find him, especially if they don't know he's missing."

She agreed with a quick nod. "I'll go down and tell Senatori's men that you've been picked up at Galerie Saint-Didier and they need to escort you here for questioning. After they've left, I'll meet you at your car. _Go_."

Senatori over his shoulder, Kyle followed Tina out of the apartment and headed up the stairs while the transformed woman started down. Kyle listened as he traversed the roofs and stowed his still-unconscious burden in a barricaded bathroom, where Senatori would have access to water while waiting for someone to find him. He didn't even know her last name, but Tina's quick thinking and grasp of possibilities reminded Kyle of AJ and he had a feeling that, with both of them on his side, he had a shot at redemption.

 

***

Conclusion

***

 

"Into the lion's den." Lex had to smile at the all-too-apropos cliché as it crossed his mind. Speeding upwards in a private gilt and glass cage, he barely noticed the view, his internal scan of timetables and alternate plans outshining the evening lights of Metropolis. A chime and Lex was at the pinnacle, ready to perform the role he'd fought for and won. Neither Kyle nor Bruce had wanted Lex anywhere near his father during the widespread strikes against LuthorCorp, but Lex had recognized the importance of keeping Lionel distracted and out-of-touch with his facilities during those critical first minutes.

When Lex exited the elevator, he was greeted with a polite smile and a cool, "Mr. Luthor, right on time. I'll let him know you're here." Depressing a switch on her desk phone, Lionel's personal assistant announced his arrival. "Your six-thirty is here, Mr. Luthor." While she waited for a reply, she opened a drawer to retrieve a small device, handing it to Lex across the desk. He accepted it with a nod, flicking a switch on the side before tucking it into the inside pocket of his suit jacket.

"Show him in, Danielle."

"Yes, sir." With a nod, Danielle rose and smiled in Lex's direction then indicated he was to follow her down the hall. Just before she opened the door to his father's office, she murmured, "Remember, I'll be right outside if you need anything, Mr. Luthor." Lex inclined his head in acknowledgement, but didn't say anything as he entered the room and waited for her to close the door.

It was no surprise when Lionel employed his usual tactics and ignored Lex's presence for a few moments, ostentatiously flipping through a sheaf of documents before finally looking up with a patently false smile. "Lex, my boy! It's been quite a while since I last spoke to you. You're my last appointment for the day, so we'll have plenty of time to talk." He made no effort to stand to greet Lex, merely waved toward the leather sofa positioned in front of the desk before relaxing back into his chair with an air of satisfaction. "I take it that you've finally come to your senses?"

Preferring to remain on his feet for the confrontation, Lex indulged in his own shark-like smile. "I never took leave of them, _Dad_. I could pretend to offer you condolences on your latest failure, but that would be counterproductive, considering I was supposed to end up dead somewhere in France."

The calm accusation was enough to bring Lionel forward, his voice rising in denial. "I never authorized… You're not my enemy. You're my son."

"Funny, I never saw the distinction." Resisting the urge to touch the device Lucius Fox had supplied, that prevented any calls from reaching Lionel's cell phone, Lex raised an eyebrow to convey his disdain and disbelief as he retorted, "If it wasn't you, then it proves you're not in control. I suggest you discuss that with Dominic, since he was the one who knew my location for the last attempt." Mentally counting off the precious seconds and minutes that Kyle and the others needed, Lex shrugged and continued casually, as if he had all the time in the world. "Either way, I'm here to personally inform you that it's over."

"What _are_ you talking about, Lex?"

Lex noted that Lionel had almost sounded surprised about the murder attempts, but he knew there was no possibility that Lionel wasn't privy to the information Tina had turned over after her mother was safe, as well as everything that Lex, Bruce and Victoria had compiled on the LuthorCorp holdings, contracts, and employees. "Levitas, Summerholt Institute, Cyntechnics Machina, Fellstone, Project Ares. I'm sure those sound familiar."

"Not really. I suppose some of them might be LuthorCorp subsidiaries. I can have Danielle check for.…" Although Lionel had regained some of his composure, Lex didn't miss how he clenched his hands together on the desk.

Lex waved away Lionel's offer, preferring to keep control of the information flow. "That won't be necessary. I have the proof that they're yours, at least for the near future. I'm afraid that most of your key researchers - Doctors Garner, Kreig, and Groll - just to name a few - will be taking very long sabbaticals in rather remote areas of the world. Something about 'a crisis of conscience' regarding illegal and unethical experiments on human subjects?"

Strolling over to the glass and chrome bar, Lex casually poured two fingers of scotch from a crystal decanter, concealing his movements from Lionel as he affixed Lucius' device under the edge of the bar. He carefully limited himself to one sip of the single malt before turning back to add, "Of course, once Senator Burke was made aware of the scope of the experiments, as well as the very real risk of the media investigating the Ares project, he had no choice but to advise against any further support in the Armed Services Committee."

Walking over to the window that spanning floor to ceiling, Lex deliberately focused his gaze on the brightly lit globe turning above the Daily Planet. He couldn't resist a smile as he twisted the metaphorical blade. "By the way, Senator Burke wanted me to let you know that he won't be refunding the money deposited into his account in the Caymans."

"Damn it, Lex!" Lionel slammed a hand on his desk as he rose to his feet, protesting, "You have no idea what you've done, do you? We're fighting a war, you fool."

"Unfortunately, it seems as if there's always a war going on somewhere." Lex shrugged, unimpressed by the reflection of Lionel's anger against the night sky. "However, does the end justify the means? Those projects, they were _humans_, and you treated them like they were less than animals." As he thought of what Kyle had gone through, of how little time they'd had together, rage and regret threatened Lex's control, and he took a deep breath and blew it out slowly.

"Humans? That's where you're wrong, Lex." Lionel walked around his desk and approached Lex slowly as he explained, "The meteor shower in Smallville didn't just cause mutations. There was evidence that at least one spaceship landed that day, maybe more. The one that was finally located leveled one of our facilities when we tried to open it."

Lex had read the data Tina had painstakingly collected for years, had learned about who had hidden the ship and what had happened to them, what had been done to Kyle and the others using the meteorites, but he wasn't going to reveal what he knew to Lionel. Reining in his renewed rage at Kyle's pain and loss, instead of letting it control him, Lex watched Lionel's hand descending in the window and shifted away before it could land on his shoulder. Lionel frowned and shook his head in evident frustration. "Don't you see, son? Everything I've done was to ensure our survival when they return."

"Our survival?" Lex wheeled to face his father. "Yours maybe, not mine!"

"Of course, yours." Lionel smiled and chuckled dismissively. "Lex, Lex, Lex. What do you think I've been doing all these years? Who do you think taught you to fight? I'm the one who told you the story about Alexander the Great on his deathbed, how he was asked to appoint a successor to keep his legacy intact, and that his answer was, 'I leave it to the strongest.'"

"It's a tainted legacy, one I've never wanted!" Taking two steps, Lex slammed his glass down on the bar, not caring about the mess. His back to Lionel, he glanced at his watch, relieved to see it was finally time for him to leave. He turned around and sidestepped Lionel to head for the door.

Lionel grabbed Lex's bicep in an attempt to stop him, his voice rasping in anger. "I won't let you do this, Lex."

"I already have." Lex yanked himself free and shoved Lionel back with hand to his chest. "I believe the appropriate quote in this context would be 'Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war.'" Refusing to stay any longer, he strode quickly to the door and pulled it open without another word, ignoring his father's shouts. Despite his anger, Lex smirked as he walked down the hallway, envisioning Lionel's frustration when he discovered neither desk nor cell phone would allow him to summon security.

Pausing her typing as Lex approached her desk, Danielle glanced up from her keyboard and asked with a smile, "Should I book another appointment, sir?"

Lex huffed sarcastically in response, "No, I'm afraid we'll never see eye-to-eye."

"Very well." She nodded and entered a command as Lex turned toward the elevator. By the time the doors opened, she was at his side and entered with him. Neither said a word as they descended but, by the time the doors opened, Tina had replaced Danielle, and Lionel's private elevator was no longer functional.

As they entered the limo that had been waiting outside the entrance, Tina laughed. "You'd think they'd have a decent security system, wouldn't you? It's really too bad every recording and transaction they've made this past week has been deleted, not to mention both their on-site and off-site backups. Just think of the chaos that would spread throughout the company if all the mainframes and databases suddenly went 'poof.'"

Lex smiled. "That would be a real shame, wouldn't it?"

~/~

The wait for Tina's signal was too long as far as Kyle was concerned. Although his more-then-human abilities had strengthened with each day that passed, his sight and hearing still weren't capable of checking on AJ from over forty miles away, contributing to Kyle's worry and distraction.

Knowing the risks involved, Kyle had decided to tackle shutting down Fellstone and the Ares project by himself a dozen times or so during the long tense journey to Wayne Manor with Tina. Those same dozen times or so, he'd then convinced himself it would be better to wait until he had a chance to talk to AJ one last time. When he'd finally emerged from Bruce Wayne's limo to see AJ standing outside the front doors of the mansion, Kyle was glad waiting had won, even though he'd known he was being selfish.

It had taken several long, and sometimes acrimonious, discussions before Kyle had conceded that LuthorCorp had accumulated too much influence and power in too many places for one man to handle. Instead, Bruce had called in some favors and assembled several teams, the members possessing skills and advantages that complemented each other. In the process, Kyle had discovered he, AJ, and Tina weren't the only people that had escaped from LuthorCorp projects or been changed by the Smallville meteorites. Billionaire or bionic, financial wizard, aquatic champion, or speedster thief, they had found common cause in taking LuthorCorp down and freeing the rest.

As if he could read Kyle's thoughts, Bruce reached over to pat Kyle's shoulder, even as he listened to the other teams checking in and verified they were in position. The silent vibration against Kyle's wrist was a relief, the warning that AJ was on his way up to meet his father the release Kyle's tense muscles craved. With a quick hand gesture, Bruce signaled their team to flank the guards that patrolled the eastern side of the Fort Avelson complex, and they moved out to take them down silently and secure them. They were depending on their inside connection, Molly Griggs, who had taught Tina all the best computer hacks, to loop the security cameras and conceal their actions until they were inside.

When no alarms went off and the outer doors clicked open without codes, it appeared that Molly had come through for them. As planned, Bruce swept away in his midnight black, headed for the security office to monitor the action, while Kyle and Mercy Graves split up to cover their assigned sections; herding disarmed guards, scientists, and released prisoners toward the exits as they went.

Unwilling to rely solely on the teams' radio transmissions, Kyle paused every minute or so to scan the complex for anyone who might have been missed and check that the outside teams were carefully sorting everyone into waiting transports. Feeling as though he already carried enough guilt for the people he had killed, or might have killed, Kyle's stipulation for the operation had been that they take every possible precaution to avoid critical injuries or death. It didn't matter what he'd learned about his past, his adoptive parents, what had been done to him in the name of science and defense. Even as Kyle set the charges that would destroy the main facility, he was determined to make sure everyone would be safe.

They all moved quickly, not willing to count on AJ's distraction tactics and Molly's overrides for too long. All they needed was a bad break, one person missing a call or arriving without warning, and they would have to deal with the military forces and law enforcement agencies. Luckily, everything went as planned until, in his last section three levels underground, Kyle encountered a closed room that he couldn't see inside to check.

Just as Kyle reached out to open the door, he heard Bruce over his radio. "We're showing clear except for the sweep teams. Everyone fall back for a final check and then we're out of here."

Although his visual scans supported Bruce's statement, Kyle toggled his mike to ask, "Are you sure about that? I still have one room to check."

"I'm looking at the heat and motion sensors, Kyle. You're definitely the only one on that level."

"Okay," Kyle answered. "I'll just check out this room and I'll…I'll…." As Kyle opened the door and stepped inside the room, waves of pain and nausea dropped him to his knees, gasping for air. He sprawled across the floor writhing under the acid-green glow of metal and liquids that he knew had to be from the Smallville meteorites, the same that had controlled him for years. Unable to move, it seemed to Kyle as if it took forever for Bruce to appear in the doorway of his personal hell.

"You're not making my life easy, Kent," Bruce growled, as he levered Kyle off the floor and over his shoulder. "Lex threatened to kill me if I didn't bring you back in one piece."

Kyle couldn't answer until they were both on the other side of the door and halfway down the corridor, but then he gasped out, "Don't worry. I'll protect you. From AJ." As the pain receded, he struggled free from Bruce's hold and traveled on his own two feet, both of them hurrying to make up the time they'd lost. When they arrived at the security office, they performed a final check, cut the power to the entire place, and then escorted Molly from the building.

Outside, nearly all of the transports were gone, dispersed to safe houses or remote drop off points, depending on whether the passengers needed to be protected or delayed. Bruce, Molly, and Kyle climbed into one of the two remaining, and led the way to a safe distance. Parked with the facility in view, Bruce offered a remote to Kyle, but he shook his head, saying, "Just bring it down."

One press of a button and the line of buildings began to implode with a series of muffled thumps, the piles of steel and concrete settling into depressions as the underground levels collapsed beneath them. When the dust began to settle, Bruce started up and drove toward the rendezvous location, where AJ and Tina would be waiting.

Kyle never looked back.

~/~

"Well, it's official."

Propped up against the headboard, Kyle glanced up from his laptop at AJ's deadpan announcement, and then smiled when he crossed the bedroom to flop onto his back next to Kyle. "What is?"

"Senator Burke's lived up to his end of the bargain, such as it was." AJ looked up at the ceiling and sighed in disgust. "And I quote, 'The Fellstone project - codename Ares has been terminated and the resources decommissioned. Although it was hoped it might prove a viable training program for our military and law enforcement agencies, the cost-benefit ratio did not support further study.'"

"Is it enough?" Kyle frowned down at AJ, obviously thinking of all the damaged and destroyed lives. "I still think I should have testified to the Armed Forces committee about what the project was really about."

AJ shook his head, disagreeing vehemently. "No, we all discussed that scenario and rejected it, too many times already. Your memory is still Swiss cheese, and you could have ended up in prison for something you may or may not have done." He reached out and captured Kyle's hand to bring it to his lips for a quick kiss. "The important thing is that LuthorCorp is going under, Fellstone and the other subsidiaries are being dismantled, the test subjects have been freed, and the research has been destroyed."

Rolling to his side, AJ tried to see what Kyle was working on, and Kyle obligingly turned the screen telling him, "Just got an email from Victoria. They're home and settling in, safe and sound, although the kids miss Alfred. She also wanted to know when we're planning to visit next, so she can make arrangements to leave the country."

"Ha and ha." AJ rolled his eyes and smirked. "She's always been amusing, in her own unique and financially lethal fashion. Speaking of financial acumen and wizardry, I've decided to take Bruce up on his offer."

Kyle closed the laptop and set in on the nightstand, which left his lap empty for all of ten seconds before AJ climbed aboard and claimed the space. Smiling, he rested his hands on AJ's hips, stole a kiss, and then asked, "Offer?" He raised his arms at AJ's unspoken demand, allowing him to tug his t-shirt over his head, while waiting for AJ's answer.

"Lucius is already making plans for his retirement, although I doubt it will be anytime soon." AJ shrugged and then unbuttoned his own shirt, leaving it on and falling open because he knew how much Kyle enjoyed sliding his hands under it to AJ's back. "He loves what he does, it's just starting to be too much for him to handle, which is where I come in. I'm looking forward to it."

"Mmm." Kyle nuzzled under AJ's jaw and lipped along his neck just the way AJ liked it, murmuring, "I've been thinking about my future, too."

Obeying AJ's urgent hands, Kyle slid down the bed so that AJ could stretch out on top of him before asking for details. "Make any decisions you're ready to share?"

"I was an asset to Fellstone because I didn't really exist. I still don't." AJ interrupted, needing to kiss away the sadness that he could detect in Kyle's voice, but Kyle persisted. "What Bruce and the others are doing, maybe I could too, use what I am for something good."

"You in a costume, working with the Caped Crusader and his buddies." AJ considered all the secrets that still needed protection, the damage that remained even after removing the cause, and he nodded in agreement. "I think it's a good idea."

"Cool." Kyle grinned and spread his legs so AJ could settle between them, sighing when he did.

"You and I, we haven't begun to tap into our potential, Kyle Kent." AJ smiled, brushed a soft kiss across Kyle's lips, and declared, "We're going to be legends in our own time."

 

fin

**Author's Note:**

> Notes: After guessing which two stories I wrote for harlequin_sv in a poll, theclexfactor wrote: Damn, crap, now I have to THINK!!!! How difficult would it be to remix "Bourne Identity" to "The Kent Identity"? Kal-El is captured at a young age by the CIA and reprogrammed as an assassin, and given the name Kyle Kent, only during one of his missions, his target gets the drop on him and he suffers from amnesia. The CIA then think he AWOLed on them and they are trying to terminate the program ("Project Superman" maybe?). Along the way to rediscovering who he is, he runs into an American Exchange Student, Alexander Luthor, and enlists only his help in getting a ride, but they soon find themselves dodging bullets and assassination attempts, and find love along the way. (See, this way Lex finds out about Kyle's powers almost up front, and Kyle will never have to lie, and we avoid all that drama...well, that drama, anyway.) :D Take your time, I'm in no hurry. Many thanks to jakrar for the beta work on the earliest chapters and hils for her help in preventing Victoria from using Americanisms. Any remaining mistakes are mine.


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